When sorrow lays us low
for a second we are saved
by humble windfalls
of the mindfulness or memory:
The taste of a fruit,
the taste of water,
that face given back to us by a dream,
the first jasmine of November,
the endless yearning of the compass,
a book we thought was lost,
the throb of a hexameter,
the slight key that opens a house to us,
the smell of a library,
or of sandalwood,
the former name of a street,
the colors of a map,
an unforeseen etymology,
the smoothness of a filed fingernail,
the date we were looking for,
the twelve dark bell-strokes,
tolling as we count,
a sudden physical pain.
Eight million Shinto deities
travel secretly throughout the earth.
Those modest gods touch us —
touch us and move on.
how would you recommend going about 'finding' your own kami? i'd assume it's quite a personal journey, but would you have any tips or anything to help out the average (new) practitioner? thank you!
The answer to this depends on if you have Japanese heritage, and if so, how much you are able to find out about them. My family immigrated recently, and I was able to do some pretty comprehensive family research. Things to look for here are:
Family crest, as some crests are associated with specific kamisama
Location, as every prefecture (formerly their own countries) have a head shrine
Profession, as some kamisama are associated with specific professions (i.e. Ebisu-sama with fishermen)
My initial approach to worshiping kamisama was, like many people raised in the West, pagan-flavored, so I wouldn't really recommend it.
If you have no Japanese heritage, look for:
Profession: What kamisama are associated with your professions? This may not be readily available in English, so feel free to ask around about this. I hope to make this information more readily available with my Patreon.
Interests: If you like to study, Tenjin-sama may be of interest to you, even if you are no longer a student.
Being moved: If you read a myth about a kamisama or a shrine's history and feel particularly moved, this is a pretty solid lead on which direction you should go.
Honestly, simply being intrigued by a kamisama is a pretty good reason, especially if your interest lasts through some research and is consistent.
供物・奉納物・神宝: Offerings, Votives, and Sacred Treasures
神饌・御神酒とは
There are many ways to worship the kami, but the most basic is kumotsu 供物 (offerings). Among the various kinds of kumotsu, food is the most common, there are two ways to offer food, first is to cook it (called jukusen 熟饌), the second is to offer it as the raw ingredients (called seisen 生饌). These are called shinsen 神饌. Some festivals offer extravagant cooked meals, but after the war the number of shrines offering the raw ingredients increased.
What is considered food offerings differs between shrines, but rice, sake (called omiki 御神酒), and water are essential. Also mochi (rice cakes) are emphasized at festivals.
初穂と直会
The first harvest, or catch of the year (hatsumono 初物) was thought to be filled with special vital energy, and was therefore offered to the kami. In the case of rice this was called hatsuho 初穂 (lit. first ears).
The hatsuho are offered to the kami in order to increase their spiritual energy, and protect the region. Those who participated then partake in eating the offerings after the festival is over. This is called naorai 直会, because the offerings contain the spiritual power of the kami, it was believed that eating the offerings would keep people healthy, and ward off evil.
Diagram of Offerings (神饌）
At the top you’ll see the sacred mirror called a shinkyō 神鏡, below from left to right, top to bottom labelled in blue are
♡ 餅 Mochi: rice cakes (typically they’re both white, but in the picture you can see a pink and white one, which is associated with the Kanazawa region)
♡ 酒 Sake: rice wine, the tall white containers are called heishi 瓶子, usually in a pair
♡ 米 Kome: rice, usually uncooked (cooked rice is typically called ご飯 gohan)
♡ 魚 Sakana: fish, in the picture the fish is a red sea bream or Tai (yes the same tai as in taiyaki) which is a particularly auspicious fish
♡ 野菜 Yasai: vegetables, featured are daikon, carrots, cucumbers, and I think a radish and onion
♡ 水 Mizu: water, this is held in a short round jar called the mizutama 水玉
♡ 塩 Shio: salt, sometimes you’ll see outside of restaurants or stores little piles of salt to ward off misfortune.
♡ 果物 Kudamono: fruit, features are pineapple, bananas, pear, apple, and oranges
玉串・御幣とは
Not all offerings are offered before the kami. Since large quantities, huge or immovable objects like land, cannot be offered, an inventory of the items is offered, or a priest will report on the donations with a congratulatory prayer, called a norito 祝詞.
In addition, since modern times, the number of people who are making monetary offerings instead of offerings of objects has increased. Because of this sort of thing, tamagushi 玉串, which symbolize various offerings are used during the ceremony where visitors to the shrine enter the prayer hall. By dedicating it to the kami, the worshipers show their gratitude and respect for them. (More on etiquette on page 53).
Gohei 御幣 are another offering. At first offerings of cloth etc… were made using sticks,, but gradually they became more formalized, with white, silver and gold, and five-colored paper streamers on a staff. Since it was placed before the kami, it came to be believed to be the dwelling place of their spirit, and became viewed as their goshintai 御神体, sacred body, and was used during purification rituals.
One Way to make Shide
The diagram in the above photo shows an example of how to make the white zig-zag streamers
① Fold the paper in half
② Make 3 incisions about 2/3 of the length as shown above.
③ Hold the left edge and fold back to the front, starting from the left cutout.
紙垂について
Shide 紙垂 paper streamers are attached to tamagushi, gohei, and shimenawa. Nowadays most shide are made of paper, but in the past cotton (made from mulberry fibers used to make washi paper), and hemp fibers were used. Although it is not known why the shide were originally attached to tamagushi and shimenawa, they’re believed to have been used to invite, or be possessed by the kami. The “kezurikake,” a ritual tool used in the “little new year” (festival held on January 15th), is also thought to have a similar meaning, as one end of a stick is made into a tassel by shavings thin layer of skin.
The above is a general way of making shide, but there are many other ways to make them. In some places, shide unique to each region are handed down, and they are sometimes used in different ways depending on the ritual.
神宝とは
When one thinks of treasure, they often assume gold, silver, and wealth, but shinpō 神宝, or sacred treasures, are inherently different from those. The three kinds of sacred treasures are: spiritual treasures related to the kami, various tools prepared for the kami, and valuable objects offered to the shrine.
“Spiritual treasures related to the kami” in the narrowest sense of the term, are sacred treasures, and are sometimes used as sacred objects in shrines (goshintai). It also believed that many of them were once symbols of ancient tribes’ royal authority (also called regalia). The typical example of these are the Three Sacred Treasures of Japan (Sanshu no Jinki 三種の神器).
三種の神器と十種神宝
The Three Sacred Treasures of Japan are the 3 spiritual treasures of the imperial family: Yata no Kagami Mirror, Yasakanino Magatama, and Kusanagi no Tsurugi Sword(八咫鏡・八尺瓊勾玉・草薙剣). The Yata no Kagami mirror and Kusanagi no Tsurugi sword are currently enshrined as the goshintai at Ise Jingū Naikū and Atsuta Jingū, with the divided spirit of them enshrined at the imperial palace (a process called bunrei 分霊).
Among the sacred treasures representing the royal authority of the imperial family, are the Ten Sacred Treasures (Tokusanokandakara 十種神宝). These are said to have been brought by the ancestor of the Monobe Clan, Nigihayahi no Mikoto, to earth from Takamagahara, and were said to have the miraculous power to bring the dead back to life.
The Three Sacred Treasures of Japan
The pictures above show the 3 treasures: Yata no Kagami, Yasakanino Magatama, and Kusanagi no Tsurugi.
♡ Yata no Kagami: at Ame no Iwato, in order to lure Amaterasu Ōmikami from the cave, Ishikoridome no Mikoto (伊斯許理度売命) crafted it. Outside the cave, Ame no Koyane no Mikoto (天児屋命) and Futodama no Mikoto (布刀玉命) put the mirror up.
♡ Yasakanino Magatama: is several large magatama (comma shaped beads) linked in a necklace. Like the Yata no Kagami, it is also a sacred treasure to try and lure Amaterasu Ōmikami from the cave, and was crafted by Tama no Oya no Mikoto (玉祖命). Both Yata (八咫) and Yasa (八尺) mean large.
♡ Kusunagi no Tsurugi: when Susano’o no Mikoto slayed the serpent Yamaha no Orochi, it is said this sword appeared from his tail.
Diagram of the Ten Sacred Treasures
In order from left to right, top to bottom
♡ 沖津鏡 Okitsu Kagami
♡ 辺津鏡 Hetsu Kagami
♡ 八握剣 Yatsuka no Tsurugi
♡ 生玉 Ikutama
♡ 死返玉 Makarukaeshi no Tama
♡ 足玉 Tarutama
♡ 道返玉 Chikaeshi no Tama
♡ 蛇比礼 Orochi no Hire
♡ 蜂比礼 Hachi no Hire
♡ 品物之比礼 Kusagusa no Mono no Hire
さまざまな神宝
The diagram above is a reproduction of an ancient drawing of the Ten Sacred Treasures, but it is just a representation of their function, not their form. What is noteworthy of the Ten Sacred Treasures is that they are composed of a mirror, a sword, a jewel (magatama), and a hire. Of these the mirrors, swords, and jewels are common to the Three Sacred Treasures. As mentioned previously (p.19), these three are often regarded as sacred objects, and it is clear that they were the most important spiritual treasures to ancient Japanese people.
The “hire,” which is not included in the Three Sacred Treasures, similar to a scarf today. In the myths regarding Ōkuninushi no Kami, there is also a hire with the spiritual ability to repel snakes and bees.
On the other hand, sacred treasures prepared for the kami include clothes, decorations for shrine buildings, daily necessities such as cosmetic tools, swords and other weapons, musical instruments, and stationary.
遷宮のたびに作り直される神宝
Every 20 years, during Ise Jingū’s Sengū ceremony, the shrine buildings within the grounds are rebuilt. Not only that but the 714 types of sacred treasures, numbering to 1,576 are rebuilt exactly as they were before. This is so the kami can use the brand-new items.
Other shrines do not have the same tradition as Ise Jingū, so this is not possible, but new treasures are sometimes dedicated for commemorative events.
Many of the treasures donated by worshippers are works of art. In the Middle Ages, samurai who prayed for long-lasting military fortune dedicated swords and other kinds of armor to the shrine.
The cat says: “Shinpō were transformed from a spiritual tool, to a daily necessity for the kami.”
Whoa boy this was a long one, 4 whole pages of information translated for your convenience. Once again a minor disclaimer that I’m not a native speaker, I do these to help myself learn more vocabulary, but also practice my translation skills every now and then.
Shinto Weddings or 神前結婚 (Shinzen Kekkon) as we see them today are actually a fairly modern conception, started during the Meiji Period (1868-1912). Historically pre-Meiji weddings were viewed as another way to honor the kami, in this case the kami Izanagi Ōkami and Izanami Ōkami. Priests did not officiate.
According to the Kokugakuin Encyclopedia of Shinto:
"...the order of ceremonies is basically as follows: (1) a purification rite; (2) a bow from the officiate; (3) the raising of shinsen (food and sake offered to the kami); (4) a norito litany performed by the officiate and addressed to the gods; (5) the lowering of the now-blessed sake (miki) and the pouring of it for the bride and groom, who drink it in one of two ritualized patterns. The first pattern, known as sankon no gi, dictates that the first cup is drunk first by the groom then bride, the second cup by the bride then groom, and the third cup by the groom then bride. The second—so-called san-san-ku-do, or "three by three, nine times" ritual—dictates that three cups of sake are drunk in three sips each: the first sip by the groom, the second sip by the bride, and the third sip by the groom again. If the couple exchanges rings, the exchange typically occurs thereafter; (6) the marriage partners read their marriage vows; (7) the performance of music; (8) sacred offerings of evergreen branches (tamagushi) are made in turn by the officiate, the couple, and, if applicable, the matchmaker; (9) the mutual pledge between families as symbolized by their partaking of the sacred wine; (10) the lowering of food offerings; and (11) a bow from the priest to conclude the ceremony."
they’re not 100% perfect books, but they’ll do just the trick. if you want other resources i definitely recommend asking @shintoinenglish because i’m sure they know lots of stuff to recommend!
On April 24th, I offered red roses to Kami-sama for a little belated St George's day (it is cultural for me being part Italian). 🌹
Now, 3 weeks later, there's a lovely little red rose "bouquet" growing in front of the shrine.
In everything you offer to Kami-sama in gratitude, Kami-sama will give back as well. 🙏🏻It is Aiyo kakeyo (interdependence)🌹
