“Do not look at what is against the rules, do not listen to what is against them, do not say what is against them” – Confucius (孔子 Kung Tzu), “Conversations and Judgments” (論語 Lun Yu). In many countries of the world, today it is customary to give friends and relatives as a sign of a […]
During the period of transition from this world to Yukai, the hidden world of subtle energy, the spirit-soul is at its most vulnerable. It can be likened to a delicate butterfly, at the moment of emergence from its chrysalis. Therefore, there are spirits entrusted with the task of protecting the spirit-soul from danger at this […]
Many Japanese visit Shinto shrines for devotional purposes and yet have their funerals held at Buddhist temples. In recent years, Christian-style weddings have become fashionable, making the situation even more complicated. Many Western observers find Japanese spiritual practices hard to disentangle and so are tempted to dismiss Japanese spirituality as convoluted and confused. In their […]
Ancient Japanese have expressed the world after death in various ways. Beyond death, one is said to go to the following variously expressed realms: the eternal land, or the land of root (tokoyonokuni, or nenokuni) the hidden world (astral world) (kakuriyo) the land of the dead (Hades) (yominokuni) the mountain, where the dead become guardian […]
During the period of transition from this world to the other world of Yukai, the hidden world of subtle energy, the spirit-soul is at its most vulnerable. It can be likened to a delicate butterfly, at the moment of emergence from its chrysalis. Therefore, there are spirits of Kami entrusted with the task of protecting […]
Many of our Greek Orthodox Christians in the US have become members of Masonic lodges. They hear of criticisms leveled against Masonry and are puzzled by them, especially because they understand Masonry to be on the side of God and morality, in general. They find it difficult to understand the charges leveled against Masonry which […]
A peculiar form of society was created in Japan after World War II. The birth of such a secular, materialistic, and atheistic society perhaps cannot be found in any other age and place in history. It is said that most Japanese, when asked for their religious status in filling out an application form for a […]
Shinto is undeniably a religion unique to the Japanese people. It is a natural religion born and nurtured in the Japanese islands, unlike Buddhism or Christianity, which are world religions that have come to Japan from foreign countries. Certainly we cannot deny the influences on Shinto from Buddhism, Confucianism, or Chinese culture. Their influences on […]
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