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Women occupy a unique role in the indigenous Japanese traditions of Shinto, including a unique form of participation as temple stewards and shamans, or miko.Though a ban on female Shinto priests was lifted during World War II, the number of women priests in Shinto is a small fraction of contemporary clergy.
' mirror ') – Often used in Shinto worship; originally bronze mirrors were used (see also shinkyō), having been introduced to Japan from China; the most famous example of mirrors in Shinto is the Yata no Kagami. Kagami (火神, lit. ' fire deity ') – Another name for Kagatsuchi. Kagome crest (籠目紋, lit.
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]
A miko (), or shrine maiden, [1] [2] is a young priestess [3] who works at a Shinto shrine. Miko were once likely seen as shamans, [4] but are understood in modern Japanese culture to be an institutionalized [5] role in daily life, trained to perform tasks, ranging from sacred cleansing [4] to performing the sacred Kagura dance.
Shinto is considered to be at the fountain-head of Japanese culture. [3] With its emphasis on the wholeness of nature and character in ethics, and its celebration of the landscape, it sets the tone for Japanese aesthetics. Until the thirteenth century, Shinto remained the main influence on Japanese aesthetics. [4]
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]
A Shinto shrine (神社, jinja, archaic: shinsha, meaning: "kami shrine") [1] is a structure whose main purpose is to house ("enshrine") one or more kami, the deities of the Shinto religion. [ 2 ] The honden [ note 1 ] (本殿, meaning: "main hall") is where a shrine's patron kami is/are enshrined.
Shinto is a blend of indigenous Japanese folk practices, beliefs, court manners, and spirit-worship which dates back to at least 600 CE. [7]: 99 These beliefs were unified as "Shinto" during the Meiji era (1868–1912), [6]: 4 [12] though the Chronicles of Japan (日本書紀, Nihon Shoki) first referenced the term in the eighth century.