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Re: Shinto beliefs and Hinduism
sorentin@computer.net (soren a.) wrote:
A solid and well-written summary of Shinto "theology" and its relationship to
Japanese society. He left out one important point, though: that Shinto and
Buddhism were never distinguished in the minds of Japanese believers until
the Meiji gov't ordered a systematic, albeit new and artificial, dissociation of
doctrines and rituals directed at "native" deities from those invoking Buddhist
divinities. Premodern Japanese religious traditions were, to borrow Allan
Grapard's term, "combinative": mixtures of elements derived from shamanistic
cults, Buddhism, Confucianism and Taoism.
This strongly suggests that the answer to the original question concerning
the similarity of Shinto and Hindu ritual is that some semi-direct connection
probably does exist. Buddhist rituals are heavily flavored and influenced by
Hindu ones, and the Buddhist practices, in turn, have long intertwined with
the rituals performed at Shinto shrines. The connection between Hindu and
Shinto is, therefore, historical and circumstantial, rather than derving from any
commonality of doctrine.
Karl Friday
Associate Professor
Dept. of History
University of Georgia
