How Did Shinto Influence Japanese Culture

Over the course of history, Japanese life and culture has been significantly influenced by the strong presence of Shinto, Japan’s native religion. From politics to social structures and beyond, Shinto can be found in every aspect of Japanese life. As of 2003, approximately 50% of Japan’s population adhere to Shintoism, which is roughly 106 million Japanese citizens (Hartz). Shinto is a polytheistic religion that has many deities known as Kami. Kami are everywhere in everything that occupies the Earth. Furthermore, Shinto does not have a known founder or central figure like many world religions, such as Christianity, Buddhism, or Islam. Shinto also differs from other world religions through which it does have a fixed scripture or holy book,

The first people known to have practiced Shinto were believed to be tribes who lived in fishing and farming villages along the coasts of Japan. Each tribe worshipped it’s own deity, or kami. A significant reason for Shinto’s undefined history is that Shinto’s traditions and rituals have only been orally passed down for numerous centuries. For several centuries, Shinto was practiced in Japan without interference until the emergence of Buddhism during the 6th century. When Buddhism was first introduced, it was hard to separate the two from one another because Shinto did not have an official name yet. As a result, people grouped Shinto beliefs and traditions under “Shinto,” which translates to “the way of the kami,” while Buddhism translates to “the way of the Buddha.” In addition to this conflict, Buddhism and Shinto competed for the favor the Japanese people, but Buddhism initially won this conflict when Emperor Hirohito led the people in abandoning Shinto in 645 (Lee). However, the separation between Buddhism and Shinto did not exist for long because the two soon grew to coexist and complement each