.Sharing ~ Learning ~ Growing ............................... The World Stories Project.

Shinto is the oldest surviving religion of Japan. The word Shinto means the way of the gods. Shintoists worship many deities, which they call kami. According to Shinto, kami are the basic force in mountains, rivers, rocks, trees, and other parts of nature. Shinto also considers kami the basic force in such processes as creativity, disease, growth, and healing.

About 2 2/3 million people practice traditional Shinto. Many worship at small shrines in their homes. Roadside shrines dedicated to certain kami are also common. Some public shrines consist of many buildings and gardens. Individual worshipers recite prayers and offer gifts of cakes, flowers, and money to the kami.

On certain occasions, Shinto priests lead ceremonies called matsuri. One of the most important Shinto matsuri is the Great Purification Ceremony. It consists of a confession of sins committed by individuals and by the nation as a whole, followed by a request that the kami remove the impure conditions caused by these sins. Other ceremonies deal with such basic goals as long life, peace, abundant harvests, and good health.

At all the public shrines I have seen there is a place to do a water purification (cleansing) before entering. This series of photos shows Keiko-san demonstrating the proper way to purify; there are very distinct steps. First you take water and cleanse the left hand, then right, after that you pour some water into your mouth and then carefully spit it out. Then you lean the cup up vertically to clean it out for the next person. This water is tap water pumped in, but in many shrines there is spring well water.

We went to the Kyoto shrine on a national holiday ~ Sports Day~ so there were a lot of people off work and at the shrine. I was interested in the fact there were soooo many young people. There were lots of young couples in their late teens and twenties. The Shinto religion is passed down orally for the most part.

In all shrines there are places to pray. The photograph to the left is of a praying area at a small local shrine.It was quiet and peaceful; there was only one priest who was living there. Some people carry books to each shrine and the priest will write a blessing in your book. In this prayer area there again is a set way to proceed. First you pull a big cord and ring a bell, next you bow twice, clap twice, silently say your prayer, and finally bow again. There are also areas where you remove your shoes and go to the alter to bow and pray. (It looks like I have holes in my socks, but they're just thin)

This was a sad yet hopeful area for parents whose children have died. It is believed that young children who die cannot go to heaven beause they cause their parents so much pain. Parents want their babies to go to heaven, so these dolls represent the parents' wishes for their babies to go to heaven.