Shinto Ways of Being Religious

by Gary E. Kessler

Buddhism shinto way

Genres: Religion

62 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2004

Reviews

[Sheherazahde · Rating 3 out of 5]

I should have read the description more carefully. This is a supplement to a textbook.

My first surprise was how thin this book is. It's not intended to stand on its own, it is a collection of source material with introductions and reading questions intended to supplement two text books Ways of Being Religious and Eastern Ways Of Being Religious by the same author.

This is a very thin academic overview of the history of Shinto intended for beginning students of philosophy and comparative religion. The author defines religion in terms of organizational structure and salvation, features that are typical to the Western Christian experience but not typical of other religions, geographically or historically. Because I don't agree with the author's definition of "religion" a lot of the features of Shinto that are problematic for him are not problematic for me. But the source material on Japanese history, beliefs, and practices is sound and I can still use it for my studies.


I was pleasantly surprised that there is a chapter on women in Shinto. The role of women historically in Shinto is discussed, both in how women affect Shinto and how Shinto affects women.

This is a reasonably good source for students interested in the academic study of Shinto religion. It is not intended for the general public, the casual reader, or the spiritual seeker.