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More cherry blossom

April 8, 2014 / John D. / 0 Comments

A KYODO picture of the taki-zakura (waterfall cherry tree) of Miharu, Fukushima Prefecture

The Japan Times carries an article today about the wave of cherry blossom sweeping the nation…
http://www.japantimes.co.jp/life/2014/04/06/language/the-sakura-front-sweeps-across-japan/#.U0Mls47R5-8

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It is widely believed that the custom of viewing sakura began in the Imperial Court in Kyoto early in the Heian Period (794-1185). Before that, it seems that people were rather more partial to the blossoming ume (梅, plum) trees that had been brought from China and were a symbol of foreign culture. But when the practice of sending envoys to China was discontinued in 894, the court in Kyoto began to be more appreciative of local culture and things indigenous to Japan. With that, sakura trees gradually became more popular.

But why has this delicate fluffy light-pink flower been so popular for such a long time?

Generally, the transience of the blossoms, which last only a few days before falling, is said to strike a chord with the Japanese character. So, too, eating and drinking under the trees is associated with an ancient belief that the fallen hanabira (petals) that happen to land in sake cups promote good health.

Rather less romantically, department stores and shops are now often decorated with cherry blossoms — more likely plastic than real — and at this time of year will have a section devoted to sakura-related products. Among these are many foods and drinks only available at this time.

Perhaps the best known are sakura cha (桜茶, cherry blossom tea）— made by pouring a hot water over a salted cherry flower — and sakura mochi (桜餅, a sweet cake made of glutinous rice and sweet red beans that’s wrapped in a salted sakura leaf). In addition, special hanami bentō (花見弁当, boxed lunches for flower-viewing), menu courses, desserts and cocktails associated with sakura will be widely available.

But Japanese don’t have a monopoly on the appreciation of sakura. Even first -time visitors to Japan will be touched to see blossoms drifting down in what’s known as a hanafubuki （花吹雪, shower of falling cherry blossom petals) and a chance to experience yozakura (夜桜, cherry-blossom viewing by moonlight or by the light of paper lanterns) should remain long in the memory.

Although there are many renowned cherry-blossom viewing spots across the nation, before setting off to visit one be sure to check radio or TV reports so you can catch the trees at their best.

In Tokyo, one of the most famous venues is Shinjukugyoen National Garden with its 1,500 cherry trees of 75 species. Ueno Park, Tokyo’s largest park, is now holding a sakura matsuri (桜祭り sakura festival), while Sumida Park along the Sumida River has more than 400 trees lighting up at night.

For enthusiasts in Kyoto, the shidare-zakura (しだれ桜, weeping cherry blossoms) of Maruyama Park and Heian Jingu are a must. The best time for hanami in the former capital is from early to mid-April, with the famed yae-zakura (八重桜, double cherry blossoms) at Ninnaji Temple normally among the last to come into full bloom.

While the sight of hundreds or thousands of cherry trees in full bloom together is a wonderful experience, around Japan there are also many beautiful ippon-zakura (一本桜, solitary specimens) well worth visiting.

Among these, three in particular are normally singled out and called sandai-zakura (三大桜, best three cherry trees). The taki-zakura (滝桜, waterfall cherry tree) in Miharu, Fukushima Prefecture, is so called because the rose-pink blossoms on its mass of downward arching branches resemble a waterfall; while usuzumi-zakura (薄墨桜, light Chinese-ink color cherry tree) in Neo, Gifu Prefecture ,is believed to have been planted by an emperor 1,500 years ago and is famous for petals that gradually change from pale pink to the color of its name. Finally there is the jindai-zakura (神代桜, mythological age cherry tree) in the precincts of Jisoji Temple in Mukawa, Yamanashi Prefecture, which is believed to be 2,000 years old and Japan’s oldest sakura.

So wherever you go, whatever you do, be sure to enjoy the fleeting delight of the cherry blossom this season and hope the weather is kind, and hard rain and strong winds hold off to allow the trees to show their full splendor.

A weeping cherry in Kyoto's Takaragaike Park

Cherry blossom

April 7, 2014 / John D. / 0 Comments

“Why should the trees be so lovely in Japan? With us, a plum or cherry tree in flower is not an astonishing sight; but here it is a miracle of beauty so bewildering that, however much you may have previously read about it, the real spectacle strikes you dumb. You see no leaves, – only one great filmy mist of petals. Is it that the trees have been so long domesticated and caressed by man in this land of the Gods, that they have acquired souls, and strive to show their gratitude, like women loved, by making themselves more beautiful for man’s sake? Assuredly they have mastered men’s hearts by their loveliness, like beautiful slaves. That is to say, Japanese hearts.” – Lafcadio Hearn

The Japanese have long made a cult of cherry blossom. It used to be plum blossom until Heian times, a custom adopted from China, for the reawakening of nature after the long sleep of winter was marked by the miraculous first flowering of the fruit tree. But the Japanese preference for cherry gradually prevailed, driven by an affinity with the evanescence of its blossom.

The sentiment is associated with the Buddhist view of the transience of life, but Shinto shares a similar outlook. It was after all the great Shinto scholar, Motoori Norinaga (1730-1801), who came up with the compelling notion of mono no aware (the pathos of things) as an underlying current in the culture. It was Motoori too who wrote the poem:

If someone asks
about the spirit of a true Japanese,
point to the wild cherry blossom
shining in the sun.

Celebrating the yearly round is an important part of pagan traditions, which signifies our connection with the seasonal cycle and our rootedness in Mother Earth. Above all, it heightens awareness of the wonder of life; through ritualising our place in the annual round, we enrich our consciousness of living.

Shrine items and names

April 6, 2014 / John D. / 0 Comments

The Japan National Tourism Organization (JNTO) has a website with indepth explanations of aspects of Japanese culture, together with some useful illustrations. Here for example is their page on Shinto Shrines, which provides names for the various items. Interesting too for what it has to say about the origins of Shinto lying in fear of destructive powers, and the origins of Kagura lying in the desire to restore the souls of the dead…

The following is (c)JTB2000: http://www.jnto.go.jp/eng/indepth/cultural/experience/d.html

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Shrine components
The jinja, or shrine, is where believers in Japan’s indigenous religion, Shintô, go to worship. Shintô originated in ancient peoples’ fears of demons and supernatural powers, and their worship of these. It has no written body of doctrine, but it is Japan’s main religion and is practised widely through ceremonies and festivals.

Shrine architecture
The main sanctuary of a shrine is called the Shinden or Honden. There are also ancillary buildings such as the Haiden, or outer hall, and the Hômotsuden, or treasury, but these are not arranged according to any particular specified layout.

Charms and fortune slips
There are many lucky charms and other such objects to be seen at a shrine. Some are used to determine the will of the gods and some as a way of communicating with the gods and asking for their protection.

Shrine staff
The chief priest of a shrine is called the Kannushi. He is responsible for all the religious observances and the running of the shrine. The young girl assistants in a shrine are called Miko.

Kagura
In ancient times, it was believed that people died when the soul left the body. To try and call it back, they used a form of magic called Kagura, which involved dancing and playing flutes and drums. This became formalized and developed into Noh and Kyôgen.

Shrines and trees pt 2

April 5, 2014 / John D. / 0 Comments

This is the second part of a prize-winning essay by Mike Zdan, entered for the International Shinto Studies Association competition in 2011. For the first part, please click here.

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When the historic ginkgo at Tsurugaoka Hachimangu was uprooted due to a storm in 2010, people across Japan – as well as those who had visited the shrine from other countries – expressed a common sense of loss and sadness. However, these feelings turned to relief and excitement at news that new shoots had grown from the trunk, and that the tree’s life was beginning again.

One of the many shrines at Ise to be renewed every 20 years. Next to it is an open space for the rebuilding, with a small structure covering the shin-no-mihashira (sacred central pillar)

A theme of natural cycles, continuation, and renewal begins to take place in this way. Perhaps the most symbolic of the mutual relationship of shrines and trees is seen in the shikinen sengu ceremony at the Grand Shrine of Ise, during which the shrine complex is taken down and rebuilt anew, every twenty years. For over a thousand years, this ceremony has continued, with shrine buildings rebuilt of local timber on adjacent sites, and festivals held to commemorate the transfer of the enshrined kami to the new building.

Crossing the Isuzu River, passing through torii into the grounds of the shrine, one enters a deepening forest of cedar. As the sounds of traffic grow faint, the iconic buildings of the shrine come into view. The simple and elegant style of construction pairs the unfinished timber and its gold accents with the rich greens and reds of the surrounding cedars, and is unique to the Grand Shrine.

Enshrined at this important location is the kami of the sun, Amaterasu Omikami. The ceremonies of thanksgiving conducted at Ise recognize that all living things receive energy from this same, ultimate source. In this grove, the lives of man and tree are recognized as springing from a common origin. Though doctrines, ideals, and concepts of various faiths and philosophies differ, the understanding of the source of life’s energy represented here is fundamental.

A tree at Ise grows upwards to the sun from the soil, composed itself in part from trees that had formed the shrine ages ago. Similarly, the busy festival of rebuilding ensures the transmission of the skills, ideas and understanding of one generation to the next. For twenty years then, what remains in the space left beside the renewed shrine, marked by contrasting black and white pebbles? Only a small building, sheltering the tip of a wide cedar pillar, anchored deep into the earth. This is the shin-no-mihashira (sacred central pillar); the yorishiro at the heart of the shrine.

Spirit pillar as used in Yayoi times for shamanic rites

The architect Tange Kenzo recognized that the erection of a single post in the center of a sacred area strewn with stones represents the form taken by Japanese places of worship in very ancient times; the shin-no-mihashira would thus be the survival of a symbolism from a very primitive symbolism to the present day. Like the forest mountain yorishiro of Omiwa Jinja, the pillar at Ise illustrates the impressive intuition of people long ago concerning the natural world, and helps us understand a concept vital to Shinto.

Sustained and surrounded by old growth forest, the relationship between the Grand Shrine and its trees allows it to be at once ancient, and at the same time young and vibrant, able to look to the future.

More than simply a vehicle to teach the techniques of building the shrine, the dedication to this form for over a thousand years suggests a purpose and mind to preserve something important. That those who care for the shrine strive to ensure that a tree remains at its heart is extremely significant. By using a great tree in this way, they compel us to respect it, and the natural world that it represents.

The late Reverend Yukitaka Yamamoto outlined the Shinto concept of interconnectedness as kannagara, the way of living harmoniously with other people, the physical world, and kami. He illustrated that we exist at a crossroads, connected vertically from kami and our forefathers through to those who will come after, and on a horizontal plane to people throughout the world. Like trees sprouting upwards from the earth, our roots as humans and living beings share a common origin, and our actions in life shape the world that our children will inherit. We are not isolated; we interact with the world, its ecosystems, its society and its people, like the branches of a tree growing and extending outwards. At once simple and profound, Shinto’s awareness of the interconnectedness of all things is invaluable.

As a truly global civilization, our focus on mutual relationships has broadened. More and more, we communicate and work across boundaries of nation and language. Moving from studies of the symbiosis of two species, to the connections between seasonal cycles of distant ecosystems, we continue to reevaluate our position relative to the environment we live in. Advances in both communication and in scientific understanding continue to broaden our point of view.

This is not to say that our existence is free from challenges and difficulty. It is not an easy task to empathize with those with whom we disagree. Also, as we find that the economic and environmental systems that we interact with are extremely complex and interrelated, we may feel overwhelmed with crises we are unable to anticipate.

Yet, we are recognizing more and more that the desire to live in harmony with the natural world and those with whom we share it will not only ensure our survival, but enable us to thrive, mutually benefiting each other in turn. Sharing a common origin as living beings, we have the potential to realize this way of life.

From the use and symbolism of trees in shrine ritual, to their illumination of the concept of kami, this relationship clearly demonstrates many facets of Shinto itself. Yet, if the connection of Shinto shrines to trees can also illustrate to the modern mind “the deep spiritual intuition of the universality of creative divinity,” we will have learned a powerful concept indeed.

Shrine to the spirit of the tree, an example of “the deep spiritual intuition of the universality of creative divinity”

Shrines and trees pt 1

April 3, 2014 / John D. / 0 Comments

Every year the International Shinto Studies Association (Shinto Kokusai Gakkai) runs a competition for the best essay about Shinto. The winners are usually published in a collection, though last year there were no winners. The Essay Competiton flyer for 2014 will be posted shortly on the Association*s homepage.

Green Shinto is delighted to carry one of the winning entries for the 2011 competition, thanks to its author Michael Zdan who has obtained permission from the Association. It concerns a subject dear to the heart of any animist and nature lover. Trees are born out of Mother Earth and reach upwards towards the heavens, making a sacred connection between the Lower and Upper Worlds. They speak to the shamanic roots of Shinto, and they formed mankind’s earliest places of worship. They have much to teach us if we would only listen.

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Shrines and their Trees – Pillar at the Heart of the Divine
by Michael Zdan

In this sanctuary,
I perceive the fundamental unity of all religions.
– A. J. Toynbee, on Ise Jingu

Sakaki offering in a tree shrine

From before recorded history until the present day, a relationship has existed between Shinto shrines and trees that is without parallel in terms of a connection between sacred and natural spaces. Besides the emblematic torii that one enters when crossing into the purified grounds of a shrine, the verdant groves, lush foliage and impressive size and shape of strong, old trees make them one of the strongest emblems of Shinto and its shrines.

Perhaps even more so than in the past – when human architecture and cities were less pervasive – the oases of green that shrine grounds continue to protect remind both reverent visitors and casual observers alike of an intangible connection that we as humans have with trees. More than this, a consideration of the connection between shrines and trees offers insight into Shinto thought and worldview that was as profound thousands of years ago as it is today. The study of this relationship however, contributes not only to deeper understanding of Shinto itself, but also its correlation to other ways of thinking and its potential as a positive spiritual, social, and environmental force.

Indeed, it is exceedingly difficult to imagine life without trees. Verdant parks, golf courses, and lake property are coveted by land owners, in no small part due to the abundance of the shade-providing wildlife habitat of which groves and forests are an integral element. In the same instant that a community permits deforestation to develop land into a city suburb, new residents demand and expect shipments of young trees from nurseries to enliven home lots and boulevards. There exists a clear human desire for closeness to the greenery of a tree.

The human connection to trees is more obvious in our use of their products. Even in an age of steel and plastic, our homes, workplaces and most other buildings continue to rely on wood for its ability to be shaped, its strength and structural qualities, as well as its physical beauty. The paper we use in vast quantities allows our personal and business lives to flourish, and books and newspapers remain indispensable for education and the flow of ideas and information.

Sacred trees are like pillars to a different world

Upon first consideration, the modern perception of trees as scenery and resource does not appear compatible with the sort of reverence that ancient peoples might have accorded them. We may worry that our professed appreciation of them appears hypocritical. Yet, the wood of magnificent trees was prized ages ago as material for important shrines or Buddhist statuary. In other cases, the cutting of such trees was absolutely prohibited in Japan, by virtue of the divine character which they expressed.

Some of the most treasured scenic areas of Japan have been noted for their green spaces and trees; the islands of Matsushima, for example. The desire to be close to living spaces has not diminished, and industries such as eco-tourism give people the opportunity to visit breathtaking areas around the world. From these ways of thinking alone, it becomes obvious that human thought concerning trees has not changed substantially throughout the ages. We make use of trees, yet maintain a fondness, and a sometimes unspoken respect for them.

Shinto shrines, places where people feel an especially strong connection to kami, were originally specific, sacred groves of trees, or other inspiring natural areas. Such spaces in particular were deliberately selected, due to a feeling of connection to kami in that particular location. Although the concept of kami may be well understood by Japanese and those with an exposure to Shinto, it is essential to understand the unique connotations of this word in the Shinto context of shrines, trees, and the spiritual world.

One definition of kami includes “any thing or phenomenon that produces the emotions of fear and awe, with no distinction between good and evil.” While such a definition may seem imposing, scholars also note that “in Shinto, there is no separation between the universe and divine creative spirit. The universe is divine creative spirit extending itself as matter and as life.” Like the expansion of the universe and its coalescence into stars, planets and living organisms, it is possible to visualize divine energy being manifest as kami. As the word Shinto itself means “the way of the kami,” it can also be understood as the way of harmoniously following divine creative spirit, the cycles and systems of the natural world.

Touching the trees at Ise is considered good luck

Shinto thought concerning the interrelatedness of the universe and divine spirit as kami is illuminated through the logical connection to nature, including of course, trees. From extremely talented or charismatic individuals, to devastating natural disasters including typhoons and earthquakes, to breathtaking ocean or mountain scenery, Shinto associates that which is awe-inspiring to a common, natural source. “Nature is not a mechanical product of an aloof manufacturing principle… Nature is divine spirit, itself, self-expanding.” In other words, Shinto recognizes the interconnectedness and common origin of all universal phenomena. This is a level of ancient understanding that has not been discarded with time, but has rather been reinforced by continuing scientific discoveries, most famously the dual nature of matter and energy of Einstein’s equation.

Accordingly, a visit to a Shinto shrine is made to renew a sense of connection to kami, and to express gratitude for the life and nourishment one receives from the natural world. As buildings, shrines house goshintai, physical objects in which the presence of kami is localized. Also known as yorishiro, these objects can be man-made, but were originally rocks, trees and sacred groves. Just as we appreciate the beauty of a tree and enjoy spending time in scenic woods, we can imagine the impression that great trees would have made on people long ago, and the sense of divinity those trees would have inspired in them. At Omiwa Jinja, the mountain Miwayama itself serves this purpose, its tree-covered slopes representative of an ancient shrine layout, before the building of separate shinden for the shrine’s goshintai.

While today’s shrines are often comprised of many buildings, their connection to trees is maintained. Significantly, the offering of a branch of sakaki is frequently a part of shrine ritual. Known as tamagushi, the evergreen bough symbolizes both longevity and the energy that connects oneself to kami. This respect for the size, age, and vibrant greenery of great trees was common to ancient thought throughout the world, and people continue to feel a deep, spiritual connection to the impressive sakaki and ginkgo of shrine grounds.

Woods - wholesome, purifying, and life-enhancing. Simply divine.

New York purification

April 3, 2014 / John D. / 0 Comments

The International Shinto Foundation has a centre in midtown Manhattan, and in the article below Stacy Smith reports on a purification and explanation session that took place one New Year. It’s instructive not only for what it has to say about purification but about Shinto in general.

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Learning the Meanings Behind the Rituals of Shintoism (by Stacy Smith)

Priest Masafumi Nakanishi purifies the 'hitogata' paper dolls (courtesy ISF)

In the Shinto religion, a large-scale purification ceremony takes place every six months, and this event is held every New Year’s Eve at the International Shinto Foundation in midtown Manhattan. Last year I joined a mixed crowd of about 20 people who were listening attentively to the explanation from Shinto priest Masafumi Nakanishi. He shared how it cleansed participants of the two types of heavenly and earthly sins.

In the ceremony, hitogata (paper dolls), on which you write your name, age and sex, are used to absorb your sins. You can also use them to rub a body part that is ailing you and then blow on the paper three times to eliminate this pain. I passed the paper over my whole body and somehow felt instantly absolved.

Nakanishi then collected the dolls and began their purification before reciting the great purification prayer, or norito, with the group. The ceremony was concluded with a sip of saké for all participants, celebrating the fact that the sins from our respective bodies had been transferred to the paper. Then, Nakanishi will eventually bring the hitogata to Japan, scattering them into pieces and strewing them in a river to finalize the process.

Hitogata paper doll which is rubbed on the body to absorb 'pollution'

In order to learn more about Shintoism, I asked Nakanishi a couple of basic questions and got some surprising answers. This religion is unusual in that one does not need to publicly profess belief in Shinto to be a Shintoist. In Japan, the local shrine automatically adds a child’s name to its list when he/she is born, so people who are Buddhist, Christian, etc. would have to ask to be removed.

Shinto is considered to be a religion with wide interpretations, not one that dictates what its followers should do. As Nakanishi said, “Even though at your household altar you are supposed to give the deities an offering of uncooked rice, if you are moved to give your favorite dishes instead, that’s fine.” He emphasized all that matters is the feelings behind one’s actions.

Despite its lack of prescriptiveness, this is not to say that Shintoism does not have certain rules. For example, when you visit a shrine it is imperative that your mind and body be purified for the gods. Ideally you would bathe at the water basin near the entrance, but since this is not socially appropriate it is recommended that you wash your hands and mouth. At the shrine building, after making an offering (only optional), you bow and clap twice each and then finish with a deep bow.

Visitors to shrines may also buy a fortune known as omikuji. There are five levels ranging from super luck to bad luck, but even if the overall fortune is not to your liking, Nakanishi said it is best to focus on the details of the section (i.e. love, work, academics) that you most care about and take it as advice regarding that. He also added that it is important to think of what you desire before you pick your fortune, as the results will speak to your wish. It is said that the fortune you pick during hatsumoude, a New Year’s visit to the shrine, determines your fate for the upcoming year so people always select very carefully at this time!

I was able to give it a try as there were omikuji at the ceremony, and was happy to get the highest level and a special charm for traffic safety. At the shrine, you can either keep your omikuji or tie it to a branch. I opted for the latter as they had a provisional tree set up at the foundation, but decided to take my charm home.

A stand for fortune slips at Suwa Taisha in Nagano

Anti-whaling decision

March 31, 2014 / John D. / 0 Comments

Environmentalists within Japan and abroad are celebrating the decision today by the International Court of Justice in The Hague which ordered a temporary halt to Japan’s Antarctic whaling program, ruling that it is not for scientific purposes as had been claimed. Established in 1945, the ICJ is the UN’s highest judicial body; its judgements are binding and cannot be appealed.

A shrine for the safety of whalers on Goto Island near Kyushu, put up at a time when ‘traditional whaling’ was a highly dangerous occupation carried out in local waters, not in the distant Antarctic by modern factory ships

A report by Andrew Darby in The Australian states that the court case was initiated in 2010. “The case began as tortuous diplomatic negotiations for Japan to phase out its Antarctic hunt broke down in the International Whaling Commission. But a series of opinions by legal expert panels gathered by international wildlife conservation groups encouraged the then environment minister, Peter Garrett, who argued strongly inside the Rudd government for taking on Japan, WikiLeaks documents showed.

When the case came to the Hague last June, it hinged on the court’s view of the IWC convention’s clause letting a member nation conduct its own scientific whaling program, despite a global moratorium on commercial whaling.

The Australian government’s counsel, Bill Campbell, QC, told the 21 judges they had an important opportunity to decide for the world what did, and did not, constitute scientific activity. “In short, Japan seeks to cloak its ongoing commercial whaling in the lab coat of science,” Mr Campbell said.

A recent article in Japan Today pointed out that, quite apart from any ethical issues, the meat for which the whales are hunted is not commercial in any sense. Not only is the operation heavily subsidised by tax-payers (even by underhand means, as described below), but the meat is for the most part unwanted, with supplies mounting ever higher.

“The amount of whale meat stockpiled for lack of buyers has nearly doubled over 10 years, even as anti-whaling protests helped drive catches to record lows. More than 2,300 minke whales worth of meat is sitting in freezers while whalers still plan to catch another 1,300 whales per year.

Initially, the government injected about 500 million yen ($5 million) a year into the program, or about 10 percent of its costs. By 2007, the subsidy had grown to about 900 million yen ($9 million), and is projected to exceed 5 billion yen ($50 million) for the current fiscal year ending in September.

In 2011, the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries used an earthquake and tsunami disaster reconstruction fund to help cover whaling debts. The ministry later acknowledged funneling 2.3 billion yen ($23 million) of the fund into whaling, triggering public outcry.”

The decision is good for whales. It’s good for the Antarctic. And it’s good for those of us in Japan paying tax.

And what is Shinto’s position on this ‘green issue’? Despite the assertions by nature lovers in the West that Shinto is concerned with the environment, the authorities are firmly in favour of whaling. Jinja Shinpo, the semi-official organ controlled by Jinja Honcho, carries an article stressing ‘The importance of Shinto priests taking a stand in favour of whaling and against animal rights.’ (See here.)