Shinto is the popular religion of Japan. Intrinsic to him is the belief in the spiritual power of nature and the protective energies of plants, trees, mountains and other forces of the Earth. All of these are known as kami, the “genius” of the “divinity” of nature, which can be a particular form such as a flower, a place such as a forest, or a natural process, such as the changing of the seasons, which brings different plants and energies to prominence, or indeed the breath of the wind, which has a spiritual and psychological effect such as clarity of mind brought about by its refreshing qualities that ‘blow our cobwebs’ and help us see more clearly.
Kami, then, are the guardian spirits of the land, but also of admirable trades, skills, talents, virtues, deeds or deeds, as well as of our ancestors and sacred dead, all of whom have an ‘essence’ that infuses our lives. In short, they are the divine forces of nature, representing the beauty and power of life in all its forms.
The Kami traditionally have two souls: a gentle one (nigi-mitama) and an aggressive one (ara-mitama) and, as we know, a spirit like the wind can behave differently depending on the soul that possesses it at the time. The spirit that manifests can be the soft breeze of a summer day, bringing us peace and a sense of calm, or a hurricane that sweeps everything away and brings sudden changes and violent advances. In this, the kami have ‘personalities’ or predispositions that are very human in nature.
The word Shinto is a conjunction of two kanji or ‘word pictures’: shin meaning ‘spirits’ and tō meaning philosophical path or ‘path’. Hence it is known as “The Way of the Spirit”; the understanding, that is, that the divine is everywhere around and within us, and that there is a way to connect with all these spirits, both inner and outer, through reverence for nature.
The first Shinto ceremonies, and still the most powerful, were performed outdoors, in forests or before rocks, which formed a naturally sacred space and a natural altar. These ceremonies did not incorporate icons, since, for example, Catholic rituals use bread and wine to represent the flesh and blood of Christ, or images of the Virgin to represent Mary, because spirits are essences without form, not form. itself: inhabitants only of the tree (or rock or waterfall) and not of the tree itself.
In this sense, Shinto is shamanistic and regards all things as living, conscious, sentient, and spiritual, just like us. As a consequence, the kami are seen as closer to human beings in their nature and temperament, thoughts and feelings, than to the ‘gods’, and they all occupy the same world as us, not distant from us or inhabiting some Heaven. far. To quote a phrase used by Terence McKenna in a different context: “Nature is alive and speaks to us. This is not a metaphor”; within Shintoism it is a reality.
The most obvious theme in Shinto, therefore, is respect for nature, and its rituals are designed to mediate relationships between the Earth, its spirits, and its human inhabitants. Any crooked branch or stone with an unusual shape could be a kami, as could a waterfall, cloud, wildflower, or the moon, or indeed more abstract but still nature-related concepts such as growth and decay. fertility, and therefore we must walk carefully on Earth and do the due observances so as not to disturb or upset these spirits. Nature’s rituals ensure that we do, and part of the reason for them is that human beings, upon death, also become part of the kami, regardless of their ‘good’ or ‘bad’ deeds on Earth, of So the tree branch you carelessly break could be the spirit of an ancestor, or indeed it could be your own spirit years from now!
Knowing this, as soon as a child is born in Japan, their name is added to a list at a Shinto shrine, making that child a “familiar spirit” or ujigami, meaning they are already a ‘kami-in. . -waiting’ and they will become one of the ‘geniuses’ of the place they are born in once they die. Those whose names are not on this list become “children of the water” (mizuko), who, upon death, are restless and dissatisfied and can cause trouble and plague.
Shinto has no commandments as such, but there are four ‘Affirmations of the Spirit’, which have their origin in the natural order:
1. The Shinto adept must love nature because it is sacred and brings us closer to the spirit.
2. You must recognize the family as sacred because it is the main way in which traditions are preserved and the spirit can be felt.
3. He or she must attend festivals dedicated to Kami, of which there are many every year.
4. And he or she should pay attention to cleanliness. Purity of mind, body and spirit are all important. Certain acts can create impurity or “filth” (kegare), such as killing or participating in the death of a living being. This should only be done with reverence, even if you are just eating a meat or vegetable takeaway, knowing that you are consuming a life to continue your own. Disrespect demonstrates a lack of concern for others and can create problems for everyone because animals or plants killed without gratitude for their sacrifice may hold a grudge (urami) and their kami will seek revenge (aragami) throughout the community. A purification ceremony to avoid this is to stand under a waterfall or cleanse yourself in the sea if you haven’t given thanks to nature first. Another variant is to wash with water and herbs that have a spiritual cleansing property. In the West, these may be verbena, calendula, rose, or valerian.
Another way to honor the spirits and gain their support is to erect an altar in your home, which is called a kamidana, or “spirit stand,” in Shinto. This hangs on the north or west wall of one of the family rooms, just above head height. Before him you can pray and make offerings to the spirits of your home and to the kami of nature in exchange for the favors they will offer you.
To make a kamidana, first cleanse and purify your home, then choose a place that is bright and quiet. On each side of the kamidana, place evergreen benches for purity and longevity, and hang a rope over the shrine as protection for the spirits that live there, so only good energies can enter. You can also place items in your shrine that mean a lot to you or for which you seek blessings and protection, such as family photographs and family heirlooms that connect you to your ancestors and their love for you. In some shrines, a mirror is also placed to reflect bad energies and keep your home and family safe. Very often plants, flowers or small branches are placed in the sanctuary to represent the purity and power of nature and the spirit it contains.
Food offerings, called shinsen, are left to the spirits on this altar, as a sign of respect and to empower them to have the energy to help you. These generally include rice, wine (sake), water, and salt. For new beginnings, a rice porridge made from the seven herbs of spring (parsley, shepherd’s purse, milkweed, chickweed, henbit, turnips, and radish) is left at the shrine on January 7 during the Nanakusa-gayu celebration. The food is removed from the altar the next day and eaten as part of a family feast. By doing this, you and your loved ones will be disease-free for a year. After making your offering, face the kamidana and give thanks for the gifts of your life. Then bow twice, clap your hands twice, and bow again. This ends the ceremony.
Shinto teaches that everything is alive and has kami or “spiritual essence”. There is a kami for everything and for all groups of things, so each rose has a kami, each species of rose has a kami, and there is a kami for all roses and then for all flowers on Earth. All of these are collectively called Yaoyorozu no Kami, an expression that literally means “eight million kami”, but actually means “an infinite number of spirits”.
And this is a good way of looking at life: recognizing the spirit in all things, appreciating that nature is alive and speaks to us, and that the richness of the Earth -in all its innumerable forms- can be our ally, helping us reconnect. with the planet we live on and knowing our place as we broaden our horizons and empower our dreams to come true.
References
There is more about kami and kamidana in The Spiritual Practices of the Ninja, and more about plant spirits in Plant Spirit Shamanism, both from Ross Heaven and published by Destiny Books. See also [http://www.wkipedia.com] Y http://www.TsubakiShrine.com