Having Faith In Tower Hamlets

A – B – C – D – E – F – G – H – I – J – K – L – M – N – O – P – Q – R – S – T – U – V – W – X – Y – Z

A

Aikido Japanese martial art

Amaterasu Omikami Divinity of the Sun

Amatsumi Pollution from above

Ame no Minakanushi Master of the August Centre of Heaven

B

Bonenkai End of year celebrations

Butsudo Way of the Buddha

C

Chinkon Shinto spiritual exercises

Chinkonto Form of spiritual practice

Chohai Morning worship

Chowa Harmony

D

Daishizen Vast cosmic setting into which we are born

E

Ebisu Guardian kami, particularly of merchants and also of rice fields

F

G

Gohei White paper streamers, cut and folded sacred paper

Gon-Guji Associate high priest

Gon-Negi Junior priests

Gosaijin Enshrined kami

Goshintai Object of reverence

Guji High priest

Gyomando Building where spirits of deceased are revered

H

Haiden Outer worship hall or sanctuary

Haraiden Purification hall

Hatsumode New Year’s celebration

Honden (or Shinden) Main worship sanctuary, main shrine

Hongu Principal shrine

I

Ireisai Memorial ceremony for the war dead

Izumo Taisha Great Shrine of Izumo

J

Jinja Shrine

Jinja Honcho Voluntary Association of Shinto Shrines

Jingu Shrine with imperial connection

K

Kami Divine spirit (either plural or singular)

Kamidana Shelf on which the miniature shrine is placed and the offerings made to the kami

Kami no Michi Way of the kami

Ki Spiritual energy source

Kigansai Prayer of purification for world peace

Kito Type of purification and blessing

Kokka Shinto State Shinto

Kokuryuon-no-Okami Kami of water, life and ki

Kon Soul

Kugyo Ascetic discipline

Kunitokotachi-no-Mikoto The earthly kami

L

M

Mei Life

Michihiko Leader

Misogi Physical act of ritual purification in water

N

Naihaiden Inner sanctuary

Naorai Ceremonial drinking with the kami

Negi Senior priest

Ni-hai-ni-hakushi-ippai The two bows, two claps and a final bow before prayers

Noorito Words of ceremonial, ceremonial address to the kami

O

Obarae The two great days of national purification (30 June and 31 December)

Obon Buddhist festival for the souls of the ancestors

Oharai Purification

Okuni-nushi-Okami Kami of happiness

Onokoro-jima Earth

Oshogatsu New Year

P

Q

R

Rei Spirit

Reishoan Tea house

S

Sakaki Evergreen tree

Sakashio Purifying salt

Sambo Offering stand

Sammi-sangen Principle of the three elements that constitute life: gas, liquid and solid

Sampai Formal shrine worship

Sarutahiko Okami Head of the earthly kami, the pioneer of the way of rightness and justice

Shaku Wooden flat stick carried by Shinto priests

Shichi-Go-San Literally seven-five-three – the children’s festival

Shimenawa Rope that marks off a purified area

Shinenkai New Year parties

Shinsen Offerings to the kami

Shinsenho Ancient ritual based on numerology

Shinko Faith

Shinsen Specially prepared food offerings to the kami: rice (the sustainer of life); water (the basis of life), salt (the purifier of life)

Susuharai Ceremonial house cleaning

T

Taisai Great festival around the third weekend of February

Takaamahara (the Plain of High Heaven, i.e. the entire universe, the cosmos

Takamanohara Translates as the solar system

Torii Great gate

Tsukiyomi Deity of the moon

Tsumi Impurity, wrong

U

Ujiko or Ujiko-sodai Shrine’s committee of representative parishioners

V

W

Waketama Separated individual souls, another way of saying ‘children of the kami’

X

Y

Yashiki-gami Household kami, a guardian

Yomi no Kuni Underworld, land of pollution

Z

This list is by no means definitive, but it covers a broad range of core Shinto – book list topics. If you would like to see any other books added to the list, we would be pleased to consider your recommendation.

Shinto: Origins, Rituals, Festivals, Spirits, Sacred Places, by C.S.Littleton.  (Published by Oxford Press, 2002)

A Year in the Life of a Shinto Shrine, by J.Nelson.  (Published by University of Washington Press 1996)

Shinto: The Kami Way, by O.Sokyo.  (Published by Charles E Tuttle Co, August 1994)

Norito, by D.Philippi D.  (Published by Princeton University Press, 1990)

These sites direct students and teachers towards comprehensive sources of information on the Shinto faith. Each site carries more links to other web-based educational resources, many relevant to the national curriculum.

www.bbc.co.uk/religion
www.re-xs.ucsm.ac.uk
www.citezenship-pieces.org.uk
www.request.org.uk
www.theresite.org.uk

(The Inter Faith Forum is not responsible for the content of these web sites. If you have any concerns about any site, please contact us. If you would like to suggest any other links, we would be happy to consider your proposal.)

Maya Kamachi, 32, is a human resources specialist on assignment with a Japanese merchant bank. Currently based in Canary Wharf, she was born and raised in Kyoto. Here, she talks about what it means to follow her faith in Tower Hamlets and how her beliefs influence her daily life.

What’s the best thing about your faith?
I love the way it always helps me put a positive perspective on the world. Shinto celebrates life! I didn’t actually realise how much it influenced the way I see things until I left Japan and came to live in London. Suddenly, I was exposed to all sorts of other beliefs and religions and that helped to put Shinto in perspective. I have really learnt to value its power to enrich my life.

How close are you to other members of the Shinto community where you live?
Shinto has always been a community religion. Being a member of the Shinto community in London and being part of the Japanese community in London are really two sides of the same coin. In Japan, Shinto touches everything everybody does. In fact, it even influences the way we design our homes and furniture. In many ways, we tend to take it for granted when we’re at home. When we’re not at home, mixing with people from the same background helps us to keep in touch with our roots. More importantly, it helps us find balance and direction in our new lives.

How do your friends and colleagues react when you talk to them about your faith?
They are fascinated, particularly by the kami, which are the Shinto spirits. We have so many kami. Some people believe there are eight million, to be precise. There are good kami and bad kami and a kami for every aspect of life.
People are also fascinated to learn that I was a shrine maiden as a young girl in Japan. I used to help keep my local shrine clean and sold lucky charms during our festivals. I also helped to perform various ceremonies. I guess being a shrine maiden is rather like being an altar boy in the Christian church.

What is the biggest misunderstanding you have heard about your faith?
People tend to think that Shinto is a form of Buddhism. Over 80% of people in Japan follow both Shinto and Buddhism. They wouldn’t bother doing that if both religions were the same. One of the important things about Shinto is that it does not have a single founder, unlike Buddhism. Shinto also places great importance on living in harmony with nature, whereas you could say that Buddhism emphasises the spiritual.

What are your favourite memories of being brought up in the Shinto faith?
March 3 – Girls’ Day! For one day every year, I was treated like royalty. As part of the celebrations, my friends and I would roll a red carpet down our front stairs and display dolls representing members of the Imperial Court. My favourite was the Empress, who took the top step beside the Emperor. I always complained that my parents made me put the dolls away too quickly. The longer the dolls were on display, says tradition, the longer it would take me to get married!

What do Shintoists believe? Shinto has been Japan’s own religion for over 2000 years. It is more concerned with this world and life than with the afterlife, with the good of the community than of the individual, and with performing rituals than with doctrines and believing. Unlike most other religions, Shinto has no real founder, no written scriptures, no body of religious law, and only a very loosely organised priesthood. Shintoists believe in worshipping the natural world to establish communion, harmony and peace with its spirits and deities through prayer and ritual. In their view, moral and physical purity is a basic law. ^ top

Shinto diversity Shinto is a tolerant religion that accepts the validity of other religions. Indeed, Shinto worshippers regularly pay respect to other religions and their practices. There are three, closely linked groups within the Shinto movement: Shrine Shinto (Jinja Shinto) Closest to the traditional form of Shinto and said to date back to prehistoric times. The term usually refers to the beliefs and rituals associated with the shrines that give their allegiance to the Jinja Honcho or Association of Shinto Shrines. Sect Shinto (Kyoha Shinto) Started in the nineteenth century and includes 13 major independent sects which are officially recognised by the Japanese government. The 13 sects, with their date of formal recognition, are: Fusokyo (1882) Izumo Oyashirokyo (1882) Jikkokyo (1882) Konkokyo (1900) Kurozumikyo (1876) Misogikyo (1894) Ontakekyo, formerly known as Mitakekyo (1882) Shinrikyo (1894) Shinshukyo (1882) Shinto Shusei-ha (1876) Shinto Taikyo, known before World War II simply as Shinto (1886) Taiseikyo (1882) Tenrikyo (1908) Folk Shinto Traditional Shinto that was practised by ordinary Japanese people at their local shrines, and not institutionalised by various national reforms. Folk Shinto influences many of the rites of passage celebrated in Japan, together with agricultural and other festivals. ^ top

How Shinto developed Shinto is an ancient Japanese religion established around 500 BCE, possibly earlier. Its name comes from the Chinese words shin tao – the way of the gods. By the eighth century, it had established itself as Japan’s official religion, along with Buddhism. Originally, Shinto was closely associated with Japan’s ruling family. This link was dissolved after the Second World War. Unlike other religions, Shinto has no specific founder, no written scriptures, no body of religious law, and only a very loosely organised priesthood. Some people argue that Shinto expresses the Japanese way of looking at the world. Four phases The development of Shinto can be divided into four periods: Before Buddhism arrives in Japan Shinto and Buddhism combine in Japan The Meiji reinterpretation of Shinto in the nineteenth century Shinto post-World War Two Shinto and Buddhism Around 84% of people in Japan follow both Shinto and Buddhism. The two religions share a basic optimism about human nature and the world, and they have developed alongside each other for centuries. Many Shintoists regard the Buddha as another kami, while many Buddhists regard the kami as manifestations of various Buddhas and Bodhisattvas. Weddings are generally performed by Shinto priests; funerals by Buddhist priests. Shinto is also significantly influenced by Confucianism.

Shinto leaders Copy to follow

How Shintoists worship Shintoists worship in shrines. There are around 80,000 shrines across Japan, many in areas of great natural beauty. Each shrine is dedicated to a specific kami who has a divine personality and responds to sincere prayers of the faithful. To enter their shrine, worshippers pass through a torii. This is a ceremonial gateway comprising two wooden columns crossed by two beams and often painted red. The torii divides the shrine’s interior from the secular world. All holy areas are marked off by plaited straw ropes, symbols of the divine presence. As part of the Shinto prayer ritual, worshipers bow twice, clap their hands twice to make sure the kami is listening, bow once again and then, before praying, throw coins into a wooden box as offerings. Music and dance Kagura (kah-goo-rah), is a ritual dance accompanied by music called gagaku (gah-gah-koo). Gagaku is the traditional music of the Japanese imperial court. Together, kagura and gagaku help to provide a link between the kami and their worshipers. Purification For Shinto worshipers, purification is essential before offering a prayer and it is performed through an exorcism ritual called harai (ha-rah-e) – cleaning one’s body with water. In larger shrines, there are stone washbasins and visitors are required to rinse their mouth and hands before approaching the deity. Kami The term kami can refer to gods, goddesses, great ancestors, and all variety of spirits that inhabit the water, rocks, trees, grass, and other natural objects. These objects are not symbols of the spirits. Rather, they are places where the spirits live. These places are regarded as sacred, and are usually encircled with a shimenawa – rope festooned with sacred white paper. Shintoists believe the world is inhabited by numerous kami, a concept summed up in the Japanese phrase yaoyorozu no kami – ‘the eight million kami’. The well-known Japanese scholar Motoori Norinaga defined kami as anything that is ‘superlatively awe inspiring’. As such, a kami can be good or evil, rough or gentle, strong or weak – and so on. There are numerous Shinto demons (oni) and spirits (kappa) that must be appeased to avoid disasters and calamities. But there is no absolute split between good and evil. According to Shinto belief, all things have good and bad aspects. In Shinto, there is no definitive standard of good and evil, no moral code. Things are as they are. Even the evil, bloodsucking kappa have some redeeming qualities. For example, the kappa is a skilled teacher in the art of bone setting and other medical practices. Important books Kojiki Record of Ancient Matters Rokkokushi Six National Histories Shoku Nihongi and its Nihon Shoki Continuing Chronicles of Japan Jinno Shotoki A study of Shinto and Japanese politics and history, written in the 14th century.

God
Shinto has no single, omnipotent God. Instead, followers worship kami, which roughly translates as spirits. There are up to eight million kami in Japan.

Everyone is regarded as a child of the kami, which means everyone is treated as sacred.

Origins
Shinto is an ancient Japanese religion established around 500 BCE, possibly earlier. Its name comes from the Chinese words shin tao – the way of the gods. By the eighth century, it had established itself as Japan’s official religion, along with Buddhism.

Statistics
Shinto is most widely followed in Japan, where around three million people regard it as their religion. There are around one million followers elsewhere in the world.

Diversity
There are three, closely linked groups within the Shinto movement:

• Jinja Shinto (Shrine Shinto) Largest and oldest Shinto group, dating back into pre-history
• Sect Shinto (Kyoha Shinto) Started in the nineteenth century and includes 13 major independent sects which are officially recognised by the Japanese government
• Folk Shinto Traditional Shinto practised by ordinary Japanese people at their local shrines

Worship
Shinto emphasises ritual rather than doctrines and beliefs.

Followers worship at shrines, offering prayers and gifts of food and saké (rice wine) to the kami. Worship also takes place privately at home.

There are around 80,000 shrines around Japan, many in areas of outstanding natural beauty.

Beliefs
Shinto sees the presence of god in animals, plants, and even in things which have no life, such as stones and waterfalls.

Shintoists follow the will of the kami and are guided by four principles:

• Family is seen as the place where Shinto traditions are preserved. Its most important celebrations relate to birth and marriage.
• Nature is sacred. To be in contact with nature is to be close to kami. Natural objects are worshipped as sacred spirits.
• Cleanliness Followers of Shinto frequently take baths, wash their hands, and rinse out their mouth.
• Matsuri involves worshipping kami and ancestral spirits.

Shinto has been Japan’s own religion for over 2000 years. It is different to most other religions because Shinto did not develop from old writings, or religious law or the teachings of a person. Shintoists believe in worshipping the natural world with prayers, so they can have harmony and peace with its kami (which can be gods, goddesses or spirits).

Tell me more A short look at what Shintoists believe and how they worship.

In depth Find out more information about the Shinto religion, like how it developed and the main things Shintoists believe in.

Where to worship

My faith Meet a lifelong Shintoist, she talks about what it means to follow her faith in Tower Hamlets and how her beliefs influence her life in the borough.

Local history Look here to find out about some Tower Hamlets buildings that are important to the Shinto faith.

Frequently asked questions Look here to find answers to questions people ask about the Shinto faith.  If you have another question about the Shinto faith, ask us - click here and send your question.

Links Look here to find addresses to other websites – they can tell you more about the Shinto faith in this borough, this country and the rest of the world.

Educational resources Look here to find addresses to other websites – they have good information about Shinto faith for students and teachers.

Book list Look here to find out about books that can tell you more about the Shinto faith.  If you know about other books about the Shinto faith please tell us – we can add it to the list.

Festivals and celebrations You can subscribe to get monthly updates here.

What the words mean You can also turn an automated glossary on from the top right hand navigation links.