An Introduction to Shinto

by David Chart, Dean Spencer (Illustrator)

Shinto is the native religious tradition of Japan. This book describes the way that Shinto is practised today, in the early 21st century, focusing on its ceremonies, called matsuri, and sacred spaces, known as jinja, and also discusses three individual jinja in some Jingū at Ise, arguably the most sacred site in Shinto, Yasukuni Jinja in Tokyo, clearly the most controversial, and Shirahata Hachiman Daijin, a “typical” jinja in Kawasaki. Other chapters cover Shinto theology, Shinto’s history and place in contemporary Japanese society, and a discussion of the famous myth of Amaterasu Ōmikami and the cave of heaven.

David Chart is a naturalised citizen of Japan, and has lived there, studying Shinto, for over twenty years. He currently works for the largest Shinto organisation in Japan (Jinja Honchō), as a consultant on their outreach to non-Japanese. (Note that this book is an independent project, however, and its contents are not endorsed by Jinja Honchō or any of the other Shinto organisations mentioned in the text.)

267 pages, Kindle Edition

Published April 17, 2020

Reviews

[E.M. Epps · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was recommended to me as the best introduction to Shinto for the completely ignorant; I agree and will second the recommendation. The author is a Brit by birth, now a Japanese citizen, who has been a devout practitioner of Shinto for many years, and works as a consultant for Jinja Honcho (the largest Shinto organization). He is exactly the guide I would have hoped for. His prose is detailed, crystal clear, and at times unexpectedly made me laugh out loud with his wry asides. The precise style of his prose and careful labelling of sources and suppositions made me wonder if he were an engineer by training; when, in the last pages, he mentions that he has a doctorate in philosophy, it all made sense. Having read this book I have a good sense of both knowing what I know and knowing what I do not know about Shinto. I will pair this with another book which more closely examines Shinto from a spiritual perspective, but I'm glad I read this first.

The kami are central to Shinto practice: matsuri are held for their benefit, and jinja exist to enshrine them. Given that, one might expect Jinja Shinto to have a clear position on what the kami are, but one would be wrong. Shinto is much more about practice than about theory, so few priests put much effort into trying to work out what the kami are, much less explaining their position to others. Indeed, historically the first theoretical analyses of Shinto were penned by Buddhist monks, and the first theology written by Shinto priests was in reaction to the claims that the monks made, as the Buddhists typically argued that the kami were subordinate to Buddhas and Bodhisattvas. The priests disagreed.

[Kyle · Rating 5 out of 5]

I wish I could find a book like this regarding every religious tradition. It was comprehensive, clear, and non-dogmatic.

Topics that stood out for me:
- The nature of Kami
- Localized tradition and ritual
- Impact of WW2 on Shinto practice and belief
- Description of Shinto rituals and ceremonies.
- Grand Renewal (the structures at certain shrines are rebuilt every 20 years)

While only 5% of Japanese citizens claim to be Shinto, nearly all of Japan participates in some aspect of Shinto ceremony. Though the focus of the book was on describing Shinto as it is practiced today, my favorite part was the UK-born author's closing comments explaining his own journey. He was born and raised a fundamentalist Christian and after losing faith in that tradition discovered Shinto. It's acceptance of those who do not necessarily believe but who find meaning in the community and ritual is something I wish my own community could import from Japan.

[Don Campbell · Rating 3 out of 5]

The best definition of “kami” may be “what you venerate when practising Shinto”, because Shinto places much more emphasis on what you do than on what you believe. One widely accepted explanation is that “kami” refers to anything that has an outstanding impact on people’s lives, including the kami...

[Anton · Rating 4 out of 5]

the diaereses on every e (ë) in Japanese words bothered me more than it probably should have, otherwise a fairly straightforward read with lots of useful information