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As there is an underlying concept of doing all one can with sincerity, [4] there are many changes in the contents of the shinsen depending on season or region. There are regions where the custom of offering up the first produce of the year before an altar without eating it remains, [5] but there are also areas where offerings are selected from amongst the seasonal foods.
Misogi (禊) is a Japanese Shinto practice of ritual purification by washing the entire body. Misogi is related to another Shinto purification ritual, harae . Thus, both are collectively referred to as misogiharae ( 禊祓 ) .
In all Shinto religious ceremonies, harae is performed in the beginning of the ritual to cleanse any evil, pollution or sins away before anyone gives offerings to the kami. Often, water and salt are used for the ceremonies to rinse hands and the face, as well as the shrine before it is prepared with offerings of goods and food. [6]
Yoshida Shinto held that Shintō was the primal religion of the world, which in turn gave rise to Buddhism and Confucianism. However, Shintō was seen not only as the source of creation, but also as the source of all principle in the world. In this sense, Shinto was seen as a divine essence or energy rather than a teaching. [1]
Nature worship, also known as Himikura Shinto, is a part of the ancient Shinto religion that originated in Japan. This form of worship is based on gratitude, fear, and respect for kami, life, and nature. Ancient Shinto practices involved using symbolic objects, such as trees, in places where the environment changed as vessels for Shinto bodies.
A torii gateway to the Yobito Shrine (Yobito-jinja) in Abashiri City, HokkaidoThere is no universally agreed definition of Shinto. [2] According to Joseph Cali and John Dougill, if there was "one single, broad definition of Shinto" that could be put forward, it would be that "Shinto is a belief in kami", the supernatural entities at the centre of the religion. [3]
Jinja-shinto (神社神道) – Originally a synonym of State Shinto (Kokka Shinto below), it is now a term criticized by specialists as problematic. [1] When applied to post-war Shinto, it means the beliefs and practices associated to shrines, particularly those associated with the Association of Shinto Shrines.
By balancing a "suprareligious" understanding of Shinto as the source of divinity for both Japan and the Emperor, the state was able to compel participation in rituals from Japanese subjects while claiming to respect their freedom of religion. [4]: 120 The state was thus able to enshrine its place in civic society in ways religions could not.