Essays on Kami

Shintoism and Buddhism in Japanese History

Before the spread of today’s religion, the early civilizations had different views as to how they could explain the things around them. Some would say it is the work of spirits who dwell upon plants, animals and inanimate objects while others believe in the intervention of divine beings who created the world prior to mankind. While some of these early beliefs have been forgotten in favor of newer religions, there are countries where early beliefs played heavily in the formation of the nation and even triggered a conflict to occur when a new religion was introduced to the ...

Shinto is the religion of the people of Japan. According to it, Japan was the first place to be created, and the deities started to appear spontaneously. Then the relationship between these deities led to the birth of a man and woman called Izanagi and Izanami respectively. The two dipped a jeweled spear into the ocean, and that is when the land of Japan was created (Blacker, 2004). They later got married and become involved sexually, and then they gave birth to their first child who turned out to be deformed. They later got involved sexually and gave birth ...

Confucianism and Shinto

Confucianism’s Ideal Person The philosophy of Confucianism advocates for the belief that humans can be taught, improve, and improve through personal and communal efforts that are either self-created or self-cultivated (Yao, 2000). Therefore, being an ideal person falls under the third concept of Confucianism called Chun-Tzu. The Chun-Tzu is believed to have attained the maximum ethical values and so would act as an example for others to follow. The morality of the Chan-Tzu or Junzi would be a combination of all the best qualities a human person can have so that other people can be influenced. Hence, the Chun-Tzu ...