ABSTRACT
As is the case in all religions of remote antiquity which did not originate in the teachings of an ethically or socially-minded founder, mythology holds a considerable place in Shintô. Myths offered indeed the most efficient means of expressing deep truths as ‘seen’ by sages in actual direct contact with nature and its laws. In the normal course of things, rituals come later to ensure lasting conformity of the visible world with those eternal laws, prayers arise when man feels incapable of harmoniously planning his earthly or future existence without the help and protection of higher Powers, and philosophy intervenes when mental faculties have developed to such an extent that they more or less obliterate or at least cloud his capacity to remain in direct contact with the truths of the world.
