was a hodgepodge of animist beliefs in various deities, spirits, and ghosts, and every village and temple had its own favorite spirits and local customs. In the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, the Japanese state created an official version of Shinto, while discouraging many local traditions. This “state Shinto” was fused with very modern ideas about nationality and race, which the Japanese elite selected from the European imperialists. Any element in Buddhism, Confucianism, and the samurai feudal ethos that could be helpful in cementing loyalty to the state was added to the mix.
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