Japan’s Shinto and Buddhist Traditions by Mr. Kaufman Bodine High School for International Affairs

1. Japan’s Shinto and Buddhist Traditions by Mr. Kaufman Bodine High School for International Affairs September, 2003

2. Japanese have two religions • Shinto – place of worship called “shrines” - means “way of the gods” – has its roots in prehistoric Japan. • Buddhism – place of worship called “temples” – brought to Japan 1,500 years ago from India and China.

3. How Do Japanese Use Two Religions? • Shinto • marriage • prayer for unborn fetus • births • educational advancements • career progress • Buddhism • deals with old age • death • funerals and memoral services • prayers for ancestors • rituals dealing with Confucian values

4. Shinto Shrines • Began in the Nara Period (724-780) and became the offical religion of Japan. • Shrines house “Kami” or deities. Each shrine has its own Kami. There are Kami of Rain, Kami of Wind, Kami of Mountains and Kami of Rivers. • Japanese go to shrines to pray for good fortune, birth ceremonies and weddings.

5. Shrines Are Everywhere a Shinto shrine on the street in Kobe

6. Main shrines have a torii gate at the entrance

7. In Kyoto, there are more than 2,000 shrines Heien Jingu Shrine built in 1895 Kiyomizu-dera Shrine originally built in 778

8. Ways To Pray Wake the gods by clapping and throw money at the main hall (Honden) Prayers are written on wooden cards (Ema) or paper (Omikuji) and hung

9. wood prayer cards (Ema)

10. Purification Your body must be purified before you enter the shinto shrine

11. Buddhist Temples • Originated in India in the 6th Century BC. • In Japan, the first Buddhist center was Nara. • Zen Buddhism was introduced from China in 1191. • The “Buddha” is not god. Buddhism is about achieving individual enlightenment – finding “the path” to self-knowledge and happiness. • The Japanese observe Buddhist traditions for funerals and ancestor worship.

12. Buddhist Temple in Nara

13. Siddhartha Gautamathe Buddha, the Enlightened One The Eightfold Path • Right views, or understanding • Right purpose, or aspiration. • Right speech. • Right conduct. • Right livelihood. • Right effort. • Right kind of awareness or mindfulness. • Right concentration, or meditation.

14. The Great BuddhaTodaiji Temple in Nara

15. Bodhisattva an enlightened being who voluntarily postpones nirvana to help others achieve individual enlightenment Boddhisatva of peace and compassion made from the ashes of the victims in Hiroshima

16. Sanju Sangendo in Kyoto

17. Memorials For Children

18. Memorialsfor the dead

19. Zen Buddhism

20. Basic Zen Conceptsas told by Abbot Fukushima, Zen Master of the Tofukuji Zen Monastery in Kyoto • The core of zen is “Mu” – the concept of “everything and nothing.” • Zen teaches the experience of “Mu” – it is personal and individual. • “Mu-Shin” is a state of “empty mind” or “free mind” – when your heart and mind are empty and you can adapt and accept anything into them. • Satori – enlightenment – “free to do anything” • “Every day is a fine day.” • “Modern people think they know everything, therefore they don’t know themselves.”

21. Tofukuji Monastery in Kyoto The monastery was built around 700 years ago. There are 3,000 maple trees thoughout the grounds.

22. The Tofukuji Zendo

23. more images of the Buddha at Tofukuji

24. a Zen Buddhist monk-in-training begs for money in Nara

25. Honen-In Temple in Kyoto

26. Ginkakuji Temple in Kyotobuilt in 1482

27. Siddhartha by Herman Hesse

28. Siddhartha by Herman Hesse • In the end, Siddhartha reaches enlightenment. • However, Siddhartha never follows any one set of beliefs. • Siddhartha’s name means “he who finds the goal.” • Every man/woman achieves their own personal goal differently. • Is Siddhartha perfect?

29. (Good luck, good fortune)