Shinto roots and the coming of Buddhism
Buddhism arrives from Korea and takes root alongside the older worship of kami, the spirits of nature and ancestors, creating Japan's characteristic blend of two religious traditions.
- Shinto: A History — Helen Hardacre, Oxford University Press (2017)
- A History of Japan (2nd edition) — Conrad Totman, Blackwell (2005)
- Religion in Contemporary Japan — Ian Reader, Macmillan (1991)
Long before Japan had writing, people on the islands worshipped kami: spirits present in mountains, waterfalls, ancient trees, ancestors and natural forces. Japan’s oldest chronicles, the Kojiki (712) and Nihon Shoki (720), tell how the sun goddess Amaterasu’s descendant became the first emperor, Jinmu, traditionally dated to 660 BCE. Historians treat this as myth, compiled to legitimise the imperial house, but the imperial line is genuinely ancient.
- Shinto: A History — Helen Hardacre, Oxford University Press (2017)
- A History of Japan (2nd edition) — Conrad Totman, Blackwell (2005)
Buddhism came from the Korean kingdom of Paekche in the sixth century; the chronicles give 552, other sources 538. After a struggle between court clans, it was embraced by the court, and Prince Shōtoku (traditionally 574–622) became revered as its patron. Under the Nara court, Emperor Shōmu built the Tōdaiji temple and its giant bronze Buddha, dedicated in 752. Along with Buddhism came Chinese writing, law, architecture and Confucian ideas.
- A History of Japan (2nd edition) — Conrad Totman, Blackwell (2005)
- Shinto: A History — Helen Hardacre, Oxford University Press (2017)
Rather than replacing kami worship, Buddhism blended with it: kami were often seen as local manifestations of Buddhas. Only in 1868 did the Meiji government force the two apart and build “State Shinto” around the emperor, a system abolished after 1945.
- Shinto: A History — Helen Hardacre, Oxford University Press (2017)
- Religion in Contemporary Japan — Ian Reader, Macmillan (1991)
Why it matters today
Most Japanese do not call themselves religious, yet they visit Shinto shrines at New Year and for a baby's blessing, and Buddhist temples for funerals and to honour ancestors at Obon. The ease of living with both, and the sense of the sacred in nature, goes back to this meeting of traditions.