[HN Gopher] Soul of Japan: An Introduction to Shinto and Ise Jin...
       ___________________________________________________________________
        
       Soul of Japan: An Introduction to Shinto and Ise Jingu (2013) [pdf]
        
       Author : rfreytag
       Score  : 45 points
       Date   : 2022-05-19 00:48 UTC (22 hours ago)
        
 (HTM) web link (media.longnow.org)
 (TXT) w3m dump (media.longnow.org)
        
       | andi999 wrote:
       | A very good book about the soul is:
       | https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bushido:_The_Soul_of_Japan
       | 
       | Basically Nitobe (the guy on the 5000 yen note) tried to explain
       | Japanese society to foreigners.
        
       | JoeDaDude wrote:
       | Disclaimer: I am no expert, have never been to Japan, and know no
       | Japanese people. That said, I've read or watched several pieces
       | [1] which state the complex relationship Japan has with religion.
       | 
       | It is said that modern Japanese see Shinto as one of the factors
       | that drove into the Asia Pacific War and World War II. Aum
       | Shinrikio [2], a sect that did terrorist attacks also contributed
       | to giving religions a bad name. Christianity is practiced only by
       | a very small minority and modern Shinto has been reduced to
       | consist almost exclusively of ritual, with little belief for
       | gods, souls, or the afterlife.
       | 
       | I'd be interested in hearing more perspectives on this from
       | anyone with first hand experience, or that just knows better.
       | 
       | [1]. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vJmWVWCdTYo
       | 
       | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gr0hxKznLTA
       | 
       | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7gZHuFtuzdg
       | 
       | [2]. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aum_Shinrikyo
        
         | andi999 wrote:
         | Dont forget buddhism, which is basically for funerals only.
         | Most japanese (>90%) get a buddhist funeral (supposedly
         | expensive).
        
         | brazzy wrote:
         | > Shinto has been reduced to consist almost exclusively of
         | ritual,
         | 
         | I really don't think this is true, or rather: it is a view
         | shaped by biased expectations of how a "real" religion should
         | look like, namely like the Abrahamic ones.
         | 
         | Shinto _always was_ a religion of rituals that aim to gain some
         | measure of control over a chaotic world.
         | 
         | >with little belief for gods,
         | 
         | That is definitely untrue - Shinto is _all about_ gods. Just
         | not omnipotent big-G Gods. Shinto Kami are approachable spirits
         | of nature and places, who might grant you a boon if you do the
         | right things and it is in their realm of responsibility.
         | 
         | >souls, or the afterlife.
         | 
         | Yes, Shinto does not have a concept of "soul" and doesn't
         | concern itself much with an afterlife (that's why Japanese
         | people get Buddhist funerals) - but why would it absolutely
         | have to?
        
       | yboris wrote:
       | Related: a classic essay "In Praise of Shadows" (1933) discussing
       | traditional Japanese aesthetics.
       | 
       | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/In_Praise_of_Shadows
        
       | purusharth2600 wrote:
       | I have been reading and learning about shintoism for the past one
       | year now. I want to explore it more deeply. Anyone here wants to
       | make this a co-op journey?
        
       ___________________________________________________________________
       (page generated 2022-05-19 23:01 UTC)