 Origin: Japan  When: 500 B.C.E or earlier  Where: Japan  Founded by: Unknown  Demographics  Population: million is the estimate  Geo distribution: Mainly Japan but there are places all over the world

 Shinto is a universal religion; but it is mainly practiced by those who are natives of Japan  Shinto is hard for foreigners to understand because it is passed down from generation to generation through the family

 There are Four Affirmations in Shinto: 1. Tradition and the family: The family is seen as the main mechanism by which traditions are preserved. Their main celebrations relate to birth and marriage. 2. Love of nature: Nature is sacred; to be in contact with nature is to be close to the Gods. Natural objects are worshipped as sacred spirits. 3. Physical cleanliness: Followers of Shinto take baths, wash their hands, and rinse out their mouth often. 4. "Matsuri": The worship and honor given to the Kami and ancestral spirits.”

 It is Polytheistic  There are thousands of Gods but only one of them stands out and she is called Amaterasu the sun goddess  The thousands of other Gods are called Kami, who make up the rain, earth, sky, animals, etc…

 “creation story tells of the history and lives of the "Kami" (deities). Among them was a divine couple, Izanagi-no-mikoto and Izanami-no-mikoto, who gave birth to the Japanese islands. Their children became the deities of the various Japanese clans. Amaterasu Omikami (Sun Goddess) was one of their daughters. She is the ancestress of the Imperial Family and is regarded as the chief deity. Her shrine is at Ise. Her descendants unified the country. Her brother, Susano came down from heaven and roamed throughout the earth. He is famous for killing a great evil serpent.”

 According to the Shinto faith, a human spirit is believed to remain forever like the spirit of Kami does.  It can be said that Shinto is not a religion which centralized its interests in the life after death, but in this world.”

A BRANCH OF BUDDHISM

 Focus on koans or statements that make little sense to achieve sudden enlightenment  EX: A philosopher asked Buddha: `Without words, without the wordless, will you tell me truth?‘ The Buddha kept silence. The philosopher bowed and thanked the Buddha, saying: `With your loving kindness I have cleared away my delusions and entered the true path.' After the philosopher had gone, Ananda asked the Buddha what he had attained. The Buddha replied, `A good horse runs even at the shadow of the whip.'