Shinto Architecture
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Shinto Architecture
Some examples of Shinto architecture Shinto architecture is the architecture of Japanese Shinto shrines. With a few exceptions like Ise Grand Shrine and Izumo Taisha, Shinto shrines before Buddhism were mostly temporary structures erected to a particular purpose. Buddhism brought to Japan the idea of permanent shrines and the presence of verandas, Tōrō, stone lanterns, and elaborate gates are some which are used both in a Shinto shrine and a Buddhist temple. The composition of a Shinto shrine is extremely variable, and none of its possible features are necessarily present. Even the or sanctuary, the part which houses the and which is the centerpiece of a shrine, can be missing. However, since its grounds are sacred, they usually are surrounded by a fence made of stone or wood called , while access is made possible by an approach called . The entrances themselves are straddled by gates called , which are therefore the simplest way to identify a Shinto shrine. A shrine ma ...
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Haiden (Shinto)
In Shinto shrine architecture, the is the hall of worship or Oratory (worship), oratory. It is generally placed in front of the shrine's main sanctuary (''honden'') and often built on a larger scale than the latter. The ''haiden'' is often connected to the ''honden'' by a ''Heiden (Shinto), heiden'', or hall of offerings. While the ''honden'' is the place for the enshrined ''kami'' and off-limits to the general public, the ''haiden'' provides a space for ceremonies and for worshiping the ''kami''. In some cases, for example at Nara prefecture, Nara's Ōmiwa Shrine, the ''honden'' can be missing and be replaced by a patch of sacred ground. In that case, the ''haiden'' is the most important building of the complex. References Shinto architecture {{Shinto-stub ...
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Yorishiro
A in Shinto terminology is an object capable of attracting spirits called , thus giving them a physical space to occupy during religious ceremonies. are used during ceremonies to call the for worship. The word itself literally means "approach substitute". Once a actually houses a , it is called a . Ropes called decorated with paper streamers called often surround to make their sacredness manifest. Persons can play the same role as a , and in that case are called or . History and their history are intimately connected with the birth of Shinto shrines. Early Japanese culture did not have the notion of anthropomorphic deities, and felt the presence of spirits in nature and its phenomena.Tamura (2000:21) Mountains, forests, rain, wind, lightning and sometimes animals were thought to be charged with spiritual power, and the material manifestations of this power were worshiped as , entities closer in essence to the mana (Oceanian cultures), Oceanian concept of mana. Village c ...
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Shinto
, also called Shintoism, is a religion originating in Japan. Classified as an East Asian religions, East Asian religion by Religious studies, scholars of religion, it is often regarded by its practitioners as Japan's indigenous religion and as a nature religion. Scholars sometimes call its practitioners ''Shintoists'', although adherents rarely use that term themselves. With no central authority in control of Shinto, there is much diversity of belief and practice evident among practitioners. A polytheism, polytheistic and animism, animistic religion, Shinto revolves around supernatural entities called the (神). The are believed to inhabit all things, including forces of nature and prominent landscape locations. The are worshipped at household shrines, family shrines, and Shinto shrine, ''jinja'' public shrines. The latter are staffed by priests, known as , who oversee offerings of food and drink to the specific enshrined at that location. This is done to cultivate harmony ...
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Yayoi Period
The Yayoi period (弥生時代, ''Yayoi jidai'') (c. 300 BC – 300 AD) is one of the major historical periods of the Japanese archipelago. It is generally defined as the era between the beginning of food production in Japan and the emergence of keyhole-shaped burial mounds (前方後円墳, ''zenpō-kōen-fun''). Chronologically, it spans from around the 10th century BCE or 9th–8th century BCE to the mid-3rd century CE. Following the Jōmon period, which was characterized by a hunter-gatherer economy, the Yayoi period marked the transition to a productive economy based on wet-rice agriculture. In the latter half of the late Yayoi period (around the 1st century CE), large regional powers emerged throughout western Japan, including the Tokai and Hokuriku regions. By the end of the 2nd century, the political entity known as Wa-koku (倭国) had formed. It is generally considered that the Yayoi period transitioned into the Kofun period around the mid-3rd century, although the ...
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Meiji Period
The was an era of Japanese history that extended from October 23, 1868, to July 30, 1912. The Meiji era was the first half of the Empire of Japan, when the Japanese people moved from being an isolated feudal society at risk of colonization by Western powers to the new paradigm of a modern, industrialized nation state and emergent great power, influenced by Western scientific, technological, philosophical, political, legal, and aesthetic ideas. As a result of such wholesale adoption of radically different ideas, the changes to Japan were profound, and affected its social structure, internal politics, economy, military, and foreign relations. The period corresponded to the reign of Emperor Meiji. It was preceded by the Keiō era and was succeeded by the Taishō era, upon the accession of Emperor Taishō. The rapid modernization during the Meiji era was not without its opponents, as the rapid changes to society caused many disaffected traditionalists from the former samu ...
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Chinjusha
In Japan, a is a Shinto shrine which enshrines a ; that is, a patron spirit that protects a given area, village, building or a Buddhist temple. The Imperial Palace has its own tutelary shrine dedicated to the 21 guardian gods of Ise Shrine. Tutelary shrines are usually very small, but there is a range in size, and the great Hiyoshi Taisha for example is Enryaku-ji's tutelary shrine. The tutelary shrine of a temple or the complex the two together form are sometimes called a . If a tutelary shrine is called ''chinju- dō'', it is the tutelary shrine of a Buddhist temple. Even in that case, however, the shrine retains its distinctive architecture. ''Chinjugami'' A ''chinjugami'' is the tutelary kami of a specific area or building, as for example a village or a Buddhist temple. The term today is a synonym of '' ujigami'' (clan's tutelary ancestor) and ; however, the three words had originally a different meaning. While the first refers to a clan's ancestor and the second to the ...
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Shinbutsu Bunri
The Japanese term indicates the separation of Shinto from Buddhism, introduced after the Meiji Restoration which separated Shinto ''kami'' from buddhas, and also Buddhist temples from Shinto shrines, which were originally amalgamated. It is a yojijukugo phrase. Background before 1868 Until the end of the Edo period, in 1868, Shinto and Buddhism were intimately connected in what was called ''shinbutsu-shūgō'' (神仏習合), to the point that the same buildings were often used as both Shinto shrines and Buddhist temples, and Shinto gods were interpreted as manifestations of Buddhas. However, the tendency to oppose Buddhism as a foreign import and to uphold Shinto as the native religion can be seen already during the early modern era, partly as a nationalistic reaction.. In a broad sense, the term ''shinbutsu bunri'' indicates the effects of the anti-Buddhist movement that, from the middle of the Edo period onwards, accompanied the spread of Confucianism, the growth of stud ...
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Hokora
is a miniature Shinto shrine either found on the precincts of a larger shrine and dedicated to folk ''kami'', or on a street side, enshrining ''kami'' not under the jurisdiction of any large shrine.Encyclopedia of ShintoHokora Accessed on December 14, 2009 ''Dōsojin'', minor ''kami'' protecting travelers from evil spirits, can for example be enshrined in a ''hokora''. The term ''hokora'', believed to have been one of the first Japanese words for Shinto shrine, evolved from , literally meaning "kami repository", a fact that seems to indicate that the first shrines were huts built to house some ''yorishiro''.The word literally means ''approach substitute''. ''Yorishiro'' were tools conceived to attract the ''kami'' and give them a physical space to occupy, thus making them accessible to human beings. See also * Glossary of Shinto * Setsumatsusha * Spirit house * Aedicula Notes References {{Shinto shrine Architecture in Japan Shinto Shinto religious obje ...
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Ise Shrine
The , located in Ise, Mie Prefecture of Japan, is a Shinto shrine dedicated to the solar goddess Amaterasu Ōmikami and the grain goddess Toyouke-hime (Toyouke Omikami). Also known simply as , Ise Shrine is a shrine complex composed of many Shinto shrines centered on two main shrines, and . The Inner Shrine, Naikū (also officially known as "Kōtai Jingū"), is dedicated to the worship of Amaterasu and is located in the town of Uji-tachi, south of central Ise, where she is believed to dwell. The shrine buildings are made of solid cypress wood and use no nails but instead joined wood. The Outer Shrine, ''Gekū'' (also officially known as "Toyouke Daijingū"), is located about six kilometers from Naikū and dedicated to Toyouke-Ōmikami, the god of agriculture, rice harvest and industry. Besides Naikū and Gekū, there are an additional 123 Shinto shrines in Ise City and the surrounding areas, 91 of them connected to Naikū and 32 to Gekū. Purportedly the home of the Sacred M ...
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