Christianity
Christianity was first brought to Japan in the 16th century initially by Portuguese missionaries and many of the country’s estimated two million Christians live in Western Japan, where the missionaries’ activities were the greatest during this initial contact.
The two historically most important things these European missionaries imported to Japan were gunpowder and Christianity. The Japanese barons initially welcomed this foreign trade, mainly because of the new weapons, and, therefore, tolerated the Jesuit missionaries.
However, towards the end of the 16th Century the Jesuits lost their monopoly position in Japan when Franciscan missionaries arrived despite a prohibition edict by the rulers of that time. This started a wave of persecution against Christianity leading to the complete extinction of the religion in Japan by 1638. The government’s rationale was that it would be impossible to exert absolute control over the populace with the interference of an overbearing and intolerant foreign religion.
In 1873, after the Meiji restoration when imperial rule was restored to Japan, freedom of religion was declared and the number of Japanese Christians began to rise again.
Religion as a tourism activity
Although Japanese people are not viewed, in contemporary times, as being particularly religious, the two leading faiths have had a very profound influence on Japan’s cultural development and this provides a wealth of tourism potential for visitors.
Western visitors are probably most familiar with the Zen form of Buddhism and this school has influenced cultural and artistic pursuits such as the tea ceremony, flower arranging, calligraphy, the martial arts, ceramics and painting.
The complimentary role between Shinto and Buddhism is also of interest in the physical sense to visitors to Japan. Travellers will see a torii at the entrance to a Shinto shrine standing next to an elaborate Buddhist temple.
Many Shinto shrines celebrate many festivals in order to show the kami the outside world and these celebrations will be of great interest to tourists wanting to gain an insight into one of the world’s unique religions.
Important features of Shinto art include elaborate shrine architecture and the preservation of tangible and intangible cultural heritage such as calligraphy; the Noh theatre; and court music, known as gagaku, an ancient dance form that originated in the courts of Tang China from 618-907.
Interesting features when visiting a Shinto Shrine
Torii – One or more torii gates, which are usually made out of wood and painted orange and black, mark the entrance to a shrine.
Komainu – These are a pair of guardian animals, usually dogs, foxes, or lions, and are found on either side of the entrance to a shrine.
Purification Trough – Found near the entrance to the shrine, the water of these fountains is used to clean visitor’s hands before entering the main hall of the shrine.
Main Hall – The main hall and the offering hall can either be two separate buildings or combined into one. The main hall’s innermost chamber contains the shrine’s sacred objects, whereas the visitors make their prayers and offerings at the offering hall.
Ema – Shrine visitors write their wishes on wooden plates and then leave them at the shrine in the hope that their wishes will come true.
Omikuji – These are fortune telling paper slips found at many shrines and temples. Randomly drawn, they contain a variety of predictions. By tying the piece of paper around a tree’s branch, good fortune is believed to come true.
Interesting features when visiting a Buddhist Temple:
Gates – these mark the entrance to the temple grounds. There is usually one main gate, and possibly several additional gates, along the temple’s main approach and these are usually of an elaborate design.
The Pagoda – this is a structure that has evolved from the Indian stupa and usually comes with three to five storeys.
The Bell – The bell is a prominent feature of every Buddhist temple. On significant occasions such as New Year’s Eve, the temple bells are rung 108 times, corresponding to the Buddhist concept of “108 worldly desires”.
Main Hall – The sacred objects of worship, such as statues, are displayed in the main hall. The majority of cemeteries in Japan are Buddhist and are located at a temple complex. The Japanese visit their ancestors’ graves throughout the year, especially during obon, a Japanese Buddhist custom to honor the departed (deceased) spirit of one’s ancestors.
Christianity
Christianity was first brought to Japan in the 16th century initially by Portuguese missionaries and many of the country’s estimated two million Christians live in Western Japan, where the missionaries’ activities were the greatest during this initial contact.
The two historically most important things these European missionaries imported to Japan were gunpowder and Christianity. The Japanese barons initially welcomed this foreign trade, mainly because of the new weapons, and, therefore, tolerated the Jesuit missionaries.
However, towards the end of the 16th Century the Jesuits lost their monopoly position in Japan when Franciscan missionaries arrived despite a prohibition edict by the rulers of that time. This started a wave of persecution against Christianity leading to the complete extinction of the religion in Japan by 1638. The government’s rationale was that it would be impossible to exert absolute control over the populace with the interference of an overbearing and intolerant foreign religion.
In 1873, after the Meiji restoration when imperial rule was restored to Japan, freedom of religion was declared and the number of Japanese Christians began to rise again.
Religion as a tourism activity
Although Japanese people are not viewed, in contemporary times, as being particularly religious, the two leading faiths have had a very profound influence on Japan’s cultural development and this provides a wealth of tourism potential for visitors.
Western visitors are probably most familiar with the Zen form of Buddhism and this school has influenced cultural and artistic pursuits such as the tea ceremony, flower arranging, calligraphy, the martial arts, ceramics and painting.
The complimentary role between Shinto and Buddhism is also of interest in the physical sense to visitors to Japan. Travellers will see a torii at the entrance to a Shinto shrine standing next to an elaborate Buddhist temple.
Many Shinto shrines celebrate many festivals in order to show the kami the outside world and these celebrations will be of great interest to tourists wanting to gain an insight into one of the world’s unique religions.
Important features of Shinto art include elaborate shrine architecture and the preservation of tangible and intangible cultural heritage such as calligraphy; the Noh theatre; and court music, known as gagaku, an ancient dance form that originated in the courts of Tang China from 618-907.
Interesting features when visiting a Shinto Shrine
Torii – One or more torii gates, which are usually made out of wood and painted orange and black, mark the entrance to a shrine.
Komainu – These are a pair of guardian animals, usually dogs, foxes, or lions, and are found on either side of the entrance to a shrine.
Purification Trough – Found near the entrance to the shrine, the water of these fountains is used to clean visitor’s hands before entering the main hall of the shrine.
Main Hall – The main hall and the offering hall can either be two separate buildings or combined into one. The main hall’s innermost chamber contains the shrine’s sacred objects, whereas the visitors make their prayers and offerings at the offering hall.
Ema – Shrine visitors write their wishes on wooden plates and then leave them at the shrine in the hope that their wishes will come true.
Omikuji – These are fortune telling paper slips found at many shrines and temples. Randomly drawn, they contain a variety of predictions. By tying the piece of paper around a tree’s branch, good fortune is believed to come true.
Interesting features when visiting a Buddhist Temple:
Gates – these mark the entrance to the temple grounds. There is usually one main gate, and possibly several additional gates, along the temple’s main approach and these are usually of an elaborate design.
The Pagoda – this is a structure that has evolved from the Indian stupa and usually comes with three to five storeys.
The Bell – The bell is a prominent feature of every Buddhist temple. On significant occasions such as New Year’s Eve, the temple bells are rung 108 times, corresponding to the Buddhist concept of “108 worldly desires”.
Main Hall – The sacred objects of worship, such as statues, are displayed in the main hall. The majority of cemeteries in Japan are Buddhist and are located at a temple complex. The Japanese visit their ancestors’ graves throughout the year, especially during obon, a Japanese Buddhist custom to honor the departed (deceased) spirit of one’s ancestors.
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