ABSTRACT
Shinto is a bold hue in the composition of religions – Buddhism, new religions, Christianity, and Confucian ethics – coloring Japan. Unlike these religions, however, Shinto is unique. Shinto posits the power of kami – a vitalistic power to create, to sustain and rejuvenate, to make one marvel – to reside potentially anywhere: in heaven and on earth; in deities, in people with extraordinary talents and gifts, and in the wonders of nature. The most casual traveler to Japan is a frequent witness to symbolic expressions of this power. In 1868, however, a new government seeking to modernize Japanese society as rapidly as possible displaced the ancient, moribund rule by a string of military strongmen called shoguns and, over the next several years, injected profound changes into society. Shinto is preeminently a religion of practice. One is less a confessor of Shinto than a doer of Shinto.
