REVIVAL OF THE SHINTO CULT
RYOBU SHINTO
THE reader is aware that early in the ninth century the celebrated
Buddhist priest, Kukai (Kobo Daishi), compounded out of Buddhism and
Shinto a system of doctrine called Ryobu Shinto. The salient feature
of this mixed creed was the theory that the Shinto deities were
transmigrations of Buddhist divinities. Thereafter, Buddhism became
the national religion, which position it held until the days of the
Tokugawa shoguns, when it was supplanted among educated Japanese by
the moral philosophy of Confucius, as interpreted by Chutsz, Wang
Yang-ming, and others.
REVIVAL OF PURE SHINTO
The enthusiasm and the intolerance showed by the disciples of Chinese
philosophy produced a reaction in Japan, and this culminated in the
revival of Shinto, during which process the anomalous position
occupied by the shogun towards the sovereign was clearly
demonstrated, and the fact contributed materially to the downfall of
the Tokugawa. It was by Ieyasu himself that national thought was
turned into the new channel, though it need scarcely be said that the
founder of the Tokugawa shogunate had no premonition of any results
injurious to the sway of his own house.
After the battle of Sekigahara had established his administrative
supremacy, and after he had retired from the shogunate in favour of
Hidetada, Ieyasu applied himself during his residence at Sumpu to
collecting old manuscripts, and shortly before his death he directed
that the Japanese section of the library thus formed should be handed
over to his eighth son, the baron of Owari, and the Chinese portion
to his ninth son, the baron of Kii. Another great library was
subsequently brought together by a grandson of Ieyasu, the celebrated
Mitsukuni (1628-1700), baron of Mito, who, from his youthful days,
devoted attention to Japanese learning, and, assembling a number of
eminent scholars, composed the Dai Nihon-shi (History of Great
Japan), which consisted of 240 volumes and became thenceforth
the standard history of the country. It is stated that the
expenditures involved in producing this history, together with a
five-hundred-volume work on the ceremonies of the Imperial Court,
amounted to one-third of the Mito revenues, a sum of about 700,000
ryo. There can be little doubt that Mitsukuni's proximate purpose in
undertaking the colossal work was to controvert a theory advanced by
Hayashi Razan that the Emperor of Japan was descended from the
Chinese prince, Tai Peh, of Wu, of the Yin dynasty.
Chiefly concerned in the compilation of the Dai Nihon-shi were Asaka
Kaku, Kuriyama Gen, and Miyake Atsuaki. They excluded the Empress
Jingo from the successive dynasties; they included the Emperor Kobun
in the history proper, and they declared the legitimacy of the
Southern Court as against the Northern. But in the volume devoted to
enumeration of the constituents of the empire, they omitted the
islands of Ezo and Ryukyu. This profound study of ancient history
could not fail to expose the fact that the shogunate usurped powers
which properly belonged to the sovereign and to the sovereign alone.
But Mitsukuni and his collaborators did not give prominence to this
feature. They confined themselves rather to historical details.
ENGRAVING: KAMO MABUCHI
ENGRAVING: MOTOORI NOBINAGA
It was reserved for four other men to lay bare the facts of the
Mikado's divine right and to rehabilitate the Shinto cult. These men
were Kada Azumamaro (1668-1736), Kamo Mabuchi (1697-1769), Motoori
Norinaga (1730-1801), and Hirata Atsutane (1776-1834). Associated
with them were other scholars of less note, but these are
overshadowed by the four great masters. Kada, indeed, did not achieve
much more than the restoration of pure Japanese literature to the
pedestal upon which it deserved to stand. That in itself was no
insignificant task, for during the five centuries that separated the
Gen-Hei struggle from the establishment of the Tokugawa family,
Japanese books had shared the destruction that overtook everything in
this period of wasting warfare, and the Japanese language itself had
undergone such change that to read and understand ancient books, like
the Kojiki and the Manyo-shu, demanded a special course of study. To
make that study and to prepare the path for others was Kada's task,
and he performed it so conscientiously that his successors were at
once able to obtain access to the treasures of ancient literature. It
was reserved for Mabuchi to take the lead in championing Japanese
ethical systems as against Chinese. By his writings we are taught the
nature of the struggle waged throughout the Tokugawa period between
Chinese philosophy and Japanese ethics, and we are enabled, also, to
reach a lucid understanding of the Shinto cult as understood by the
Japanese themselves. The simplest route to that understanding is to
let the four masters speak briefly, each for himself:
"Learning is a matter in which the highest interests of the empire
are involved, and no man ought to be vain enough to imagine that he
is able by himself to develop it thoroughly. Nor should the student
blindly adhere to the opinions of his teacher. Anyone who desires to
study Japanese literature should first acquire a good knowledge of
Chinese, and then pass over to the Manyo-shu, from which he may
discover the ancient principles of the divine age. If he resolve
bravely to love and admire antiquity, there is no reason why he
should fail to acquire the ancient style in poetry as well as in
other things. In ancient times, as the poet expressed only the
genuine sentiments of his heart, his style was naturally direct, but
since the practice of writing upon subjects chosen by lot came into
vogue, the language of poetry has become ornate and the ideas forced.
The expression of fictitious sentiment about the relations of the
sexes and miscellaneous subjects is not genuine poetry. [Kada
Azumamaro.]
"Wherein lies the value of a rule of conduct? In its conducing to the
good order of the State. The Chinese for ages past have had a
succession of different dynasties to rule over them, but Japan has
been faithful to one uninterrupted line of sovereigns. Every Chinese
dynasty was founded upon rebellion and parricide. Sometimes, a
powerful ruler was able to transmit his authority to his son and
grandson, but they, in their turn, were inevitably deposed and
murdered, and the country was in a perpetual state of civil war. A
philosophy which produces such effects must be founded on a false
system. When Confucianism was first introduced into Japan, the
simple-minded people, deceived by its plausible appearance, accepted
it with eagerness and allowed it to spread its influence everywhere.
The consequence was the civil war which broke out immediately after
the death of Tenji Tenno, in A.D. 671, between that Emperor's brother
and son, which only came to an end in 672 by the suicide of the
latter.
"In the eighth century, the Chinese costume and etiquette were adopted
by the Court. This foreign pomp and splendour covered the rapid
depravation of men's hearts, and created a wide gulf between the
Mikado and his people. So long as the sovereign maintains a simple
style of living, the subjects are contented with their own hard lot.
Their wants are few and they are easily ruled. But if a sovereign has
a magnificent palace, gorgeous clothing, and crowds of finely dressed
women to wait on him, the sight of these things must cause in others
a desire to possess themselves of the same luxuries; and if they are
not strong enough to take them by force, their envy is excited. Had
the Mikado continued to live in a house roofed with shingles and
having walls of mud, to carry his sword in a scabbard wound round
with the tendrils of some creeping plant, and to go to the chase
carrying his bow and arrows, as was the ancient custom, the present
state of things would never have come about. But since the
introduction of Chinese manners, the sovereign, while occupying a
highly dignified place, has been degraded to the intellectual level
of a woman. The power fell into the hands of servants, and although
they never actually assumed the title, they were sovereigns in fact,
while the Mikado became an utter nullity. . .
"In ancient times, when men's dispositions were straightforward, a
complicated system of morals was unnecessary. It would naturally
happen that bad acts might occasionally be committed, but the
integrity of men's dispositions would prevent the evil from being
concealed and growing in extent. In these days, therefore, it was
unnecessary to have a doctrine of right and wrong. But the Chinese,
being bad at heart, were only good externally, in spite of the
teaching they received, and their evil acts became of such magnitude
that society was thrown into disorder. The Japanese, being
straightforward, could do without teaching. It has been alleged that,
as the Japanese had no names for 'benevolence,' 'righteousness,'
'propriety,' 'sagacity,' and 'truth' they must have been without
these principles. But these things exist in every country, in the
same way as the four seasons which make their annual rounds. In the
spring, the weather does not become mild all at once, or in the
summer, hot. Nature proceeds by gradual steps. According to the view
of the Chinese, it is not summer or spring unless it becomes hot or
mild all of a sudden. Their principles sound very plausible but are
unpractical. [Kamo Mabuchi.]
"Japan is the country which gave birth to the goddess of the Sun,
which fact proves its superiority over all other countries that also
enjoy her favours. The goddess having endowed her grandson with the
Three Sacred Treasures, proclaimed him sovereign of Japan for ever
and ever. His descendants shall continue to rule it as long as the
heavens and earth endure. Being invested with this complete
authority, all the gods under heaven and all mankind submitted to
him, with the exception of a few wretches who were quickly subdued.
To the end of time each Mikado is the son of the goddess. His mind is
in perfect harmony of thought and feeling with hers. He does not seek
out new inventions but rules in accordance with precedents which date
from the Age of the Gods, and if he is ever in doubt, he has recourse
to divination, which reveals to him the mind of the great goddess. In
this way the Age of the Gods and the present age are not two ages,
but one, for not only the Mikado but also his ministers and people
act up to the tradition of the divine age. Hence, in ancient times,
the idea of michi, or way, (ethics) was applied to ordinary
thoroughfares only, and its application to systems of philosophy,
government, morals, religion, and so forth is a foreign notion.
"As foreign countries (China and India, particularly the former) are
not the special domain of the Sun goddess, they have no permanent
rulers, and evil spirits, finding a field of action there, have
corrupted mankind. In those countries, any bad man who could manage
to seize the power became a sovereign. Those who had the upper hand
were constantly scheming to maintain their positions, while their
inferiors were as constantly on the watch for opportunities to oust
them. The most powerful and cunning of these rulers succeeded in
taming their subjects, and having secured their position, became an
example for others to imitate. In China the name of 'holy men' has
been given to these persons. But it is an error to count these 'holy
men' as in themselves supernatural and good beings, superior to the
rest of the world as are the gods. The principles they established
are called michi (ethics), and may be reduced to two simple rules,
namely, to take other people's territory and to keep fast hold of it.
"The Chinese 'holy men' also invented the Book of Changes, by which
they pretended to discover the workings of the universe; a vain
attempt, since it is impossible for man with his limited intelligence
to discover the principles which govern the acts of the gods. In
imitation of them, the Chinese nation has since given itself up to
philosophizing, to which are to be attributed its constant internal
dissensions. When things go right of themselves, it is best to leave
them alone. In ancient times, although there was no prosy system in
Japan, there, were no popular disturbances, and the empire was
peacefully ruled. It is because the Japanese were truly moral in
their practice that they required no theory of morals, and the fuss
made by the Chinese about theoretical morals is owing to their laxity
in practice. It is not wonderful that students of Chinese literature
should despise their own country for being without a system of
morals, but that the Japanese, who were acquainted with their own
ancient literature, should pretend that Japan too had such a system,
simply out of a feeling of envy, is ridiculous.
"When Chinese literature was imported into Japan, the people adopted
many Chinese ideas, laws, customs, and practices, which they so mixed
up with their own that it became necessary to adopt a special name
for the ancient native customs, which were in consequence called Kami
no michi or Shinto, the word 'michi' being applied in the same sense
as the Chinese Tao, and Kami because of their divine origin. These
native customs survived only in ceremonies with which the native gods
are worshipped. Every event in the universe is the act of the gods.
They direct the changes of the seasons, the wind and the rain, the
good and bad fortune of States and individuals. Some of the gods are
good, others bad, and their acts partake of their own natures.
Buddhists attribute events to 'retribution' (Inga), while the Chinese
ascribe them to be the 'decree of heaven' (Tien ming). This latter is
a phrase invented by the so-called 'holy men' to justify murdering
sovereigns and seizing their dominions. As neither heaven nor earth
has a mind, they cannot issue decrees. If heaven really could issue
decrees, it would certainly protect the good rulers and take care to
prevent bad men from seizing the power, and, in general, while the
good would prosper, the bad would suffer misfortune. But in reality
we find many instances of the reverse. Whenever anything goes wrong
in the world, it is to be attributed to the action of the evil gods
called 'gods of crookedness,' whose power is so great that the Sun
goddess and the Creator-gods are sometimes unable to restrain them;
much less are human beings able to resist their influence. The
prosperity of the wicked and the misfortunes of the good, which seem
opposed to ordinary justice, are their doing. The Chinese, not
possessing the traditions of the Divine Age, were ignorant of this
truth, and were driven to invent the theory of heaven's decrees.
"The eternal endurance of the dynasty of the Mikado is a complete
proof that the 'way,' called Kami no michi or Shinto, infinitely
surpasses the systems of all other countries. The 'holy men' of
China were merely unsuccessful rebels. The Mikado is the sovereign
appointed by the pair of deities, Izanagi and Izanami, who created
this country. The Sun goddess never said, 'Disobey the Mikado if he
be bad,' and therefore, whether he be good or bad, no one attempts to
deprive him of his authority. He is the Immovable Ruler who must
endure to the end of time, as long as the sun and moon continue to
shine. In ancient language the Mikado was called a god, and that is
his real character. Duty, therefore, consists in obeying him
implicitly without questioning his acts. During the Middle Ages, such
men as Hojo Yoshitoki, Hojo Yasutoki, Ashikaga Takauji, and others,
violated this duty (michi) and look up arms against him. Their
disobedience to the Mikado is attributable to the influence of the
Chinese learning. This 'way' was established by Izanagi and Izanami
and delivered by them to the Sun goddess, who handed it down, and
this is why it is called the 'way of the gods.'
"The nature of this 'way' is to be learned by studying the Kojiki and
ancient writings, but mankind has been turned aside from it, by the
spirits of crookedness, to Buddhism and Chinese philosophy. The
various doctrines taught under the name of Shinto are without
authority, Human beings, having been produced by the spirit of the
two creative deities, are naturally endowed with the knowledge of
what they ought to do, and what they ought to refrain from doing. It
is unnecessary for them to trouble their heads with systems of
morality. If a system of morals were necessary, men would be inferior
to animals, all of whom are endowed with the knowledge of what they
ought to do, only in an inferior degree to man. If what the Chinese
call benevolence, modesty, filial piety, propriety, love, fidelity,
and truth really constituted the duty of man, they would be so
recognized and practised without any teaching; but since they were
invented by the so-called 'holy men' as instruments for ruling a
viciously inclined population, it became necessary to insist on more
than the actual duty of man. Consequently, although plenty of men
profess these doctrines, the number of those that practise them is
very small. Violations of this teaching were attributed to human
lusts. As human lusts are a part of man's nature, they must be a part
of the harmony of the universe, and cannot be wrong according to the
Chinese theory. It was the vicious nature of the Chinese that
necessitated such strict rules, as, for instance, that persons
descended from a common ancestor, no matter how distantly related,
should not intermarry. These rules, not being founded on the harmony
of the universe, were not in accordance with human feelings and were
therefore seldom obeyed.
"In ancient times, Japanese refrained from intermarriage among
children of the same mother, but the distance between the noble and
the mean was duly preserved. Thus, the country was spontaneously well
governed, in accordance with the 'way' established by the gods. Just
as the Mikado worshipped the gods in heaven and earth, so his people
pray to the good gods in order to obtain blessings, and perform rites
in honour of the bad gods in order to avert their displeasure. If
they committed crimes or denied themselves, they employed the usual
methods of purification taught them by their own hearts. Since there
are bad as well as good gods, it is necessary to propitiate them with
offerings of agreeable food, playing the lute, blowing the flute,
singing and dancing, and whatever else is likely to put them in good
humour.
"It has been asked whether the Kami no michi is not the same as the
Taoism of Laotzu. Laotzu hated the vain conceits of the Chinese
scholars, and honoured naturalness, from which a resemblance may be
argued; but as he was born in a dirty country not under special
protection of the Sun goddess, he had heard only the theories of the
succession of so-called 'holy men,' and what he believed to be
naturalness was simply what they called natural. He did not know that
the gods are the authors of every human action, and this ignorance
constituted a cause of radical difference. To have acquired the
knowledge that there is no michi (ethics) to be learned and practised
is really to have learned to practise the 'way of the gods.' . . .
Many miracles occurred in the Age of the Gods, the truth of which was
not disputed until men were taught by the Chinese philosophy to
analyse the acts of the gods by the aid of their own feeble
intelligence. The reason assigned for disbelieving in miracles is
that they cannot be explained; but in fact, although the Age of the
Gods has passed away, wondrous miracles surround us on all sides. For
instance, is the earth suspended in space or does it rest upon
something else? If it be said that the earth rests upon something
else, then what is it that supports that something else? According to
one Chinese theory, the earth is a globe suspended in space with the
heavens revolving round it. But even if we suppose the heavens to be
full of air, no ordinary principles will account for the land and sea
being suspended in space without moving. The explanation offered is
as miraculous as the supposition previously made. It seems plausible
enough to say that the heavens are merely air and are without any
definite form. If this be true, there is nothing but air outside the
earth, and this air must be infinite or finite in extent. If it is
infinite in extent, we cannot fix any point as its centre, so that it
is impossible to understand why the earth should be at rest; for if
it be not in the centre it cannot be at rest. If it be finite, what
causes the air to condense in one particular spot, and what position
shall we assign to it?
"In any case all these things are miraculous and strange. How absurd
to take these miracles for granted, and at the same time to
disbelieve in the wonders of the Divine Age! Think again of the human
body. Seeing with the eyes, hearing With the ears, speaking with the
mouth, walking on the feet, and performing all manner of acts with
the hands are strange things; so also the flight of birds and insects
through the air, the blossoming of plants and trees, the ripening of
their fruits and seeds are strange; and the strangest of all is the
transformation of the fox and the badger into human form. If rats,
weasels, and certain birds see in the dark, why should not the gods
have been endowed with a similar faculty?.... The facts that many of
the gods are invisible now and have never been visible furnish no
argument against their existence. Existence can be made known to us
by other senses than those of sight, such as odour or sound, while
the wind, which is neither seen, heard, nor smelt is recognized by
the impression which it makes upon our bodies. [Motoori Norinaga].
"Although numbers of Japanese cannot state with any certainty from
what gods they are descended, all of them have tribal names (kabane)
which were originally bestowed by the Mikado, and those who make it
their province to study genealogies can tell from a man's ordinary
surname who his remotest ancestor must have been. From the fact of
the divine descent of the Japanese people proceeds their immeasurable
superiority to the natives of other countries in courage and
intelligence.*
*Although Hirata claims the superiority for his own countrymen, he
frankly acknowledges the achievements of the Dutch in natural
science.
". . . The accounts given in other countries, whether by Buddhism or
by Chinese philosophy, of the form of the heavens and earth and the
manner in which they came into existence, are all inventions of men
who exercised all their ingenuity over the problem, and inferred that
such things must actually be the case. As for the Indian account, it
is nonsense fit only to deceive women and children, and I do not
think it worthy of reflection. The Chinese theories, on the other
hand, are based upon profound philosophical speculations and sound
extremely plausible, but what they call the absolute and the finite,
the positive and negative essences, the eight diagrams, and the five
elements, are not real existences, but are fictitious names invented
by the philosophers and freely applied in every direction. They say
that the whole universe was produced by agencies, and that nothing
exists which is independent of them. But all these statements are
nonsense. The principles which animate the universe are beyond the
power of analysis, nor can they be fathomed by human intelligence,
and all statements founded upon pretended explanations of them are to
be rejected. All that man can think and know is limited by the powers
of sight, feeling, and calculation, and what goes beyond these
powers, cannot be known by any amount of thinking. . . .
"The Chinese accounts sound as if based upon profound principles, and
one fancies that they must be right, while the Japanese accounts
sound shallow and utterly unfounded in reason. But the former are
lies while the latter are the truth, so that as time goes on and
thought attains greater accuracy, the erroneous nature of these
falsehoods becomes even more apparent whale the true tradition
remains intact. In modern times, men from countries lying far off in
the West have voyaged all round the seas as their inclinations
prompted them, and have ascertained the actual shape of the earth.
They have discovered that the earth is round and that the sun and the
moon revolve round it in a vertical direction, and it may thus be
conjectured how full of errors are all the ancient Chinese accounts,
and how impossible it is to believe anything that professes to be
determined a priori. But when we come to compare our ancient
traditions as to the origin of a thing in the midst of space and its
subsequent development, with what has been ascertained to be the
actual shape of the earth, we find that there is not the slightest
error, and this result confirms the truth of our ancient traditions.
But although accurate discoveries made by the men of the Far West as
to the actual shape of the earth and its position in space infinitely
surpass the theories of the Chinese, still that is only a matter of
calculation. There are many other things actually known to exist
which cannot be solved by that means; and still less is it possible
to solve the question of how the earth, sun, and moon came to assume
their form. Probably those countries possess theories of their own,
but whatever they may be, they can but be guesses after the event,
and probably resemble the Indian and the Chinese theories.
"The most fearful crimes which a man commits go unpunished by society
so long as they are undiscovered, but they draw down on him the
hatred of the invisible gods. The attainment of happiness by
performing good acts is regulated by the same law. Even if the gods
do not punish secret sins by the usual penalties of law, they inflict
diseases, misfortunes, short life, and extermination of the race.
Never mind the praise or blame of fellow men, but act so that you
need not be ashamed before the gods of the Unseen. If you desire to
practise true virtue, learn to stand in awe of the Unseen, and that
will prevent you from doing wrong. Make a vow to the god who rules
over the Unseen and cultivate the conscience implanted in you, and
then you will never wander from the way. You cannot hope to live more
than one hundred years in the most favourable circumstances, but as
you will go to the unseen realm of Okuninushi after death and be
subject to his rule, learn betimes to bow down before heaven. The
spirits of the dead continue to exist in the unseen world which is
everywhere about us, and they all become gods of varying character
and degrees of influence. Some reside in temples built in their
honour; others hover near their tombs, and they continue to render
service to their princes, parents, wives, and children as when in
their body. [Hirata Atsutane.]"*
*The above extracts are all taken from Sir Ernest Satow's Revival of
Pure Shinto in the appendix to Vol. III. of the "Transactions of the
Asiatic Society of Japan."
The great loyalist of the eleventh century, Kitabatake Chikafusa, had
fully demonstrated the divine title of the sovereigns of Japan, but
his work reached only a narrow circle of readers, and his arguments
were not re-enforced by the sentiment of the era. Very different was
the case in the days of the four literati quoted above. The arrogant
and intolerant demeanour of Japanese students of Chinese philosophy
who elevated the Middle Kingdom on a pedestal far above the head of
their own country, gradually provoked bitter resentment among
patriotic Japanese, thus lending collateral strength to the movement
which took place in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries in
favour of reversion to the customs and canons of old times.
As soon as attention was intelligently concentrated on the history of
the past, it was clearly perceived that, in remote antiquity, the
empire had always been administered from the Throne, and, further,
that the functions arrogated to themselves by the Hojo, the Oda, the
Toyotomi, and the Tokugawa were pure usurpations, which deprived the
Imperial Court of the place properly belonging to it in the State
polity. Just when this reaction was developing strength, the dispute
about the title of the ex-Emperor occurred in Kyoto, and furnished an
object lesson more eloquent than any written thesis. The situation
was complicated by the question of foreign intercourse, but this will
be treated separately.
ENGRAVING: MITSUGUMI-NO-SAKAZUKI (Sake Cups used only on Happy
Occasions such as Weddings and New Year Days)
ENGRAVING: DIFFERENT STYLES OF COIFFURE