Death and Dying Practices in Shintoism Essay Example

Introduction

Shintoism is the traditional religion in Japan and it is mainly concerned with the ritual practices and connecting a connection between the present lives and the ancient beliefs in the country. The beliefs of the Shinto are that human beings are naturally good and they always want to do the right thing. They also believe that any evil deeds are caused by some evil spirits that attack human beings. The Shinto believers, therefore, aim at purifying the life of the followers through prayers and offerings with the aim of keeping away the evil spirits. One major difference between Shinto and other religions is that it does not its laws and principles written down in any scriptures (Encyclopedia, 2018). The death and burial rites are also not written but they have been passed from generation to generation over centuries. The religion associates deaths with the evil spirits and they have specific rites that are conducted to prevent it.

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Genera death rituals and customs

The Shinto followers have specific death rites that can be seen in many parts of Japan where the religion is practiced. The religion teaches that death is associated with high pollution and this called for the need to purify through rites. Celebrations are done for good health, a good life, peace, and prosperity but mourning and rites are practiced for death. The gravesites are carefully maintained and incense is lit when conducting the rites. There is usually a picture of at least one ancestor hanging at the shrine where the rituals are conducted as one of the requirements. Flowers are brought to the shrine each week and a bowl of sand is placed at the shrine to hold the incense during the visit to the shrines. In the mornings, every day, food and drinks are put at the shrine as an offering to the ancestors. One of the favorite foods for the ancestors is believed to be chocolate. The dishes and flower vases are cleaned every day and these morning rituals are done even before breakfast.

The preparations of the burials are done as per the protocols that have been laid down over centuries. All activities in a burial ceremony are planned and conducted as per the teachings of the religion. A typical burial in Shinto has about twenty procedures conducted in order. Among the twenty, there are four most interesting ones which are koden, kotsuage, kichu-fuda and bunkotsu. Each of these has specific roles and they cannot be skipped. For example, kichu-fuda is a one-day period which involves intense mourning. During the one day morning, people carry solid black clothes and they may carry a rosary. The mourning is started and concluded by a Shinto priest. Koden is the second activity in the burial period and it may take place during the kichu-fuda. Koden involves giving presents to the people affected by the death. Gifts are given by the family, friends, and neighbors to the close relatives of the deceased.

Kotsuage is the other step and it involves gathering the person's ashes. The bones of the deceased that do not burn completely are removed using chopsticks and placed in the urn together with the ashes. The urn is then taken to the shrine where the priests conduct services and later buried at the gravesite. During bunkotsu stage, some ashes are given to the family to keep in the home shrines where ashes from many other ancestors could be found. The shrine at home is maintained by the family members and it is a place where the family can pay their tributes to the deceased. As opposed to other religions, Shinto does not have weekly services at the shrines. Alternatively, followers visit the shrines at their own convenient times. Some of them do so once or twice a month while others do so more or less regularly. The religion also has specific days when they conduct rites of passage to their boys and girls.

Boys aged five years and girls of the same age are taken to the shrines on the 15th of November each year. For the adults, they visit the shrines and have a festival on 15th of each January. The dates help to pass the rites and rituals among the generations. Children are taught how to carry out the death rituals and rites from the young age. During the January occasion, the young men used to join the congregations of the other elder men in the society, where the death rituals would be taught. In most families, there are two altars, one for the Buddhist faith and the other one for the Shinto. Most of the families conduct marriages and wedding using the Buddhist beliefs and funerals in Shinto beliefs. At the shrines, purification may be done at one corner just before the ceremony and this is meant to purify the place and the people who are to undertake the ceremony. Food offerings may be offered at the shrine but meat is prohibited. It is a taboo to shed blood in the holy place and this is why meat is not one of the offerings (Hirai, 2018). Some of the common prayers done at the funeral are also done on many other occasions where purification is needed.

The Shinto people see death as a bad thing or as a punishment to people. They hold ceremonies to celebrate good health and prosperity and funerals are the opposite of this celebration. The Shinto believe that after death, people go to a place known as yomi, an underground realm where a river separates the living from the dead. However, there are new beliefs, which state that there is a resurrection of the dead. The new faith is about Elysium and it explains the possibility of resurrecting after death. Death and corpses are viewed negatively as a source of pollution called kegare. As stated before, the presence of Kegare is associated with diseases and more death. Therefore, death is viewed as a source and a result of pollution and bad things in the society. However, death is also seen as a way to apotheosis and which allow the good people to defend the society. For example, after the death of Emperor Ojin, he was enshrined as a god of war of Hachiman (Schmitz, 2015). The Shinto followers believe that such a god helps them to win in the wars.

Although Shinto is among the oldest religions in Japan, it has the least followers. The death and related rituals are clearly followed and passed on to the people. After the body is cremated, the Shinto priest gives the deceased a new name and this is believed to be the name that the person uses in heaven. When people go home after the funeral, they throw salt over their shoulders to keep away any evil spirits that may be associated with the just concluded rituals. In some of the houses, salt is sprinkled on the ground and the people from the burial can walk on it on their way home. The family of the deceased does not attend parties and other celebrations for 49 days after the funeral. Graves are maintained well as a sign of respecting the people who are buried in them. On the 3rd, 7th and 49th days after the funeral, the Shinto teaches that anniversaries should be done at the graves (Yoshimura, 1935). The rituals help to keep away the negative spirits after the burial.

Preparing for the funeral

The first step is wetting of the deceased's lips by one of the relatives, known as matsugo no mizu. It is done to give the deceased their last water in life and is done as soon as possible after death. It is followed by the washing of the corpse and is known as yukan, performed by relatives. Kiyu Hokoku is the third step which is the announcement of the death. The ritual is done to announce the death to the spirit world and is done at the family shrine. The fourth step is the decoration of the pillow which involves placing the head of the deceased on a pillow, facing north. Food offerings are given at this point and a sword or knife is placed beside the deceased. After this, the body is placed in a coffin and daily food offerings are made twice a day until the body is buried. The spirit is then announced to have returned to the shrine and later the ground is purified to be ready for the burial. The priest purifies himself and mourners give their final tributes. The corpse is transported in a procession to the place of burial and a sword and banners are placed beside it as a sign that it is time to move on. Only close relatives to the deceased touch the dead body and this is during the rituals explained above. Priests wear white in funerals and this is the main difference between Shinto and Buddhist funerals where priests wear back. The Shinto believe that after death, their spirit is with the ancestors and it is connected to the people who are alive. The good ones go to a new world known as heaven and others reside in a world for spirits. During the burial rituals, the priest transfers the spirit of the deceased to a wooden tablet and uses the tablet to hold the spirit. It is also believed that the spirits can affect the health and well-being of the family members and the society. The offerings that are done before and after the burial are meant to please the spirits to avoid any misfortunes associated with them. Special chants, prayers, and songs are done at the burial period and it is possible to identify a burial from other celebrations. Most of them are about purification and directing of the spirit. A priest is highly respected in Shinto due to the roles they play during the ceremonies. Cremation is done to almost everybody, and only the most elite people do not get cremated. The analysis above shows that Shinto has specific ways of conducting their burials. Even though the religion does not have any written scriptures, their rituals are clear and exact. Death is viewed as a negative occurrence that brings pain to the families.

References

"Shinto." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. Retrieved on August 09, 2018 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/humanities/dictionaries-thesauruses-pictures-and-press-releases/shinto-0

Hirai, N. (2018, May 25). Shinto. Retrieved August 8, 2018, from http://www.britannica.com/topic/Shinto/Ritual-practices-and-institutions

Schmitz, R. (2015). What does the Shinto religion believe happens to them after death? (n.d.). Retrieved August 8, 2018, from http://www.quora.com/What-does-the-Shinto-religion-believe-happens-to-them-after-death

Shinto Funerals. Worldclass.net, Retrieved on August 11, 2018, from www.worldclass.net/TeachingGlobally/WorldReligions/shinto_funerals.htm

Yoshimura, T. (1935). Shinto (The way of the gods). Tokyo: The Japan Times & Mail.