Shintoism is Japan’s indigenous religious tradition, shaped by reverence for kami, ritual purity, and the ties among people, places, and nature. Rather than beginning with one prophet or one doctrine, Shinto grew from prehistoric Japanese practices—and a visit to a Shinto shrine still makes those ideas visible, from the torii gate at its entrance to the water basin before prayer.
What Shintoism Means and Where It Began
“Shinto” comes from Chinese characters meaning “Way of the Gods.” In Japanese, it is also called Kami no Michi, the way of the kami. Shinto developed on the Japanese archipelago. Rather than arriving from another culture or through missionaries, it grew organically from nature and ancestor cults in prehistoric Japan.
For that reason, the question “When was Shintoism founded?” has no single date. There is no known founder, central dogma, or one sacred book. Among its earliest surviving written records are the Kojiki, completed in 712, and the Nihon Shoki, completed in 720. Both were compiled under imperial commission. Although they preserve myths and traditions, they do not mark the start of Shinto itself.
In short, Shinto is less a religion defined by a founding event than a set of practices for approaching sacred presences, keeping ritual order, and living in harmony with them.
Kami Explain Who “God” Is in Shinto
Shinto does not have one all-powerful god in the monotheistic sense. At its center are kami. In Shinto, the word can include nature spirits, ancestors, mythical beings, historical heroes, and forces of nature. A mountain, river, old tree, or honored ancestor may be connected with kami.
Rather than naming a literal total, the phrase Yaoyorozu no Kami, “eight million kami,” means countless kami. As a result, Shinto can make room for sacred presences at many scales: a major national shrine, a neighborhood shrine, a roadside sanctuary, or a family altar.
Among these figures, Amaterasu Ōmikami, the sun goddess, is regarded as the highest kami. In Japanese imperial mythology, the emperor is her direct descendant. Other kami are closely associated with specific roles, needs, and places.
| Kami | Associated with | What makes the example notable |
|---|---|---|
| Amaterasu Ōmikami | The sun | She is the highest kami and is linked in myth to the imperial line. |
| Inari Ōkami | Rice, tea, and sake | About 30,000 shrines, nearly one-third of Japan’s Shinto shrines, are dedicated to Inari. |
| Hachiman | War and archery | Hachiman is the second most widely venerated kami, with about 25,000 shrines. |
Four soul aspects—rough, gentle, blessing, and wondrous—are also attributed to kami. Because of that complexity, it is misleading to reduce them to a familiar Western idea of “gods.”
Shintoism Beliefs Put Purity Before Doctrine
At the center of Shintoism beliefs is kegare, often translated as pollution or defilement. Kegare disrupts harmony with kami. Harae, or purification, removes it and restores that relationship. Accordingly, the emphasis falls on ritual purity, connection with nature, and proper action rather than on a fixed creed.
Instead of teaching sin and salvation in the usual Western sense, Shinto has no afterlife judgment or hell. After death, most people are understood to become kami of their own family, or ancestor kami. As an ethical ideal, makoto, meaning sincerity or a true heart, matters because ritual should be carried out with genuine intent.
In everyday life, purification can be quiet, such as washing before prayer. In misogi, a person uses water from a waterfall, river, or sea to cleanse body and spirit. Before a sumo bout, wrestlers scatter salt in the ring as shubatsu, a direct echo of this concern with ritual purity.
A Shinto Shrine Makes Sacred Space Visible
In Shinto, a place of worship is a shrine, or jinja. An estimated 80,000 shrines in Japan have resident priests. Including small roadside shrines and household altars raises the estimate to about 160,000. More than a single building, a shrine’s approach, boundaries, and natural setting help define a sacred precinct.
For many visitors, the best-known Shintoism symbol is the torii, the gate that marks the threshold between the ordinary world and sacred space. At least 20 torii styles exist, ranging from the plain, straight Shinmei type to the curved Myōjin type. The oldest shrine style, Shinmei-zukuri, is preserved at Ise Jingū in Mie Prefecture: a thatched wooden building without nails, crossed by vertical roof timbers called chigi.
Within the shrine grounds, other symbols mark a place where kami are present. Around a sacred tree, rock, or object, a braided rice-straw shimenawa may be placed. From shimenawa or purification wands hang white zigzag paper streamers called shide, symbols of ritual purity.
Three parts of a Shinto shrine
- Honden: the main sanctuary, accessible only to priests.
- Haiden: the worship hall where visitors pray.
- Temizuya: the water pavilion used for hand and mouth purification.
What to Do at a Shinto Shrine
Ise Jingū, dedicated to Amaterasu and home to the imperial mirror treasure, is Japan’s most important shrine. Its buildings are reconstructed every 20 years in a practice called Shikinen Sengū. The tradition has continued for more than 1,300 years; the 62nd rebuilding was completed in 2013, and the 63rd is planned for 2033.
At any shrine, customs can vary, but the standard prayer etiquette is called Ni-Rei Ni-Hakushu Ichi-Rei: two deep bows, two handclaps, and one final deep bow. A respectful first visit follows this sequence:
- Bow lightly before passing through the torii, and walk to one side. The center path is reserved for the kami.
- At the temizuya, cleanse your hands and mouth with the provided water.
- Offer a coin to the kami and ring the bell if there is one.
- Make two deep bows, clap twice, then make one final deep bow.
- Write a wish on an ema wooden tablet if you choose. These offerings are hung at the shrine and burned at New Year.
- If you receive an omikuji fortune with a bad prediction, tie it to a pine branch or designated rack to avert the misfortune.
Shinto and Buddhism Have Long Shared Japanese Life
Shinto and Buddhism were not always neatly separate. From the sixth century, they were connected for more than a thousand years in a blending called Shinbutsu Shūgō. Buddhist temples could stand within shrine complexes, and the term gongen described a Buddha appearing provisionally as a kami.
In 1868, the Meiji government ordered the separation of kami and Buddhas through the Shinbutsu Bunri Rei. The policy helped trigger Haibutsu Kishaku, an anti-Buddhist movement in which thousands of temples were destroyed and monks were forcibly returned to lay life. State Shinto then functioned as Japan’s national state religion from 1868 until 1945, when Allied occupation authorities dismantled it.
That history does not mean ordinary practice is divided into two exclusive camps. Many Japanese still turn to Shinto for births and weddings, while Buddhist rites are common for funerals and ancestor worship.
Why Spirited Away Feels So Shinto
Spirited Away is strongly inspired by Shinto. Its central bathhouse serves kami who come to be refreshed and purified, directly recalling Shinto purification rites. The Japanese title, Sen to Chihiro no Kamikakushi, means “the hiding of Sen and Chihiro by kami.” Kamikakushi is a traditional belief that kami can carry people away.
The film signals its sacred setting from the opening scene with a torii, a sacred cedar tree, and small stone shrines. Its “stink spirit” is revealed as a polluted river kami. When Chihiro cleans it, the scene turns a Shinto concern—pollution affecting a kami—into a vivid story event. The film is not a Shinto lesson, but its many kami show how expansive the tradition’s sacred world can be.
Four Common Misconceptions About Shintoism
- “Shinto has one god.” Shinto reveres countless kami; Amaterasu is the highest kami, not the sole deity.
- “Someone founded Shinto.” No historical founder is known. The tradition emerged from prehistoric Japanese practices.
- “Shinto is just Buddhism in Japan.” The two traditions influenced each other for centuries, but Shinto has distinct kami, shrines, and rituals.
- “A torii is only decoration.” It marks a boundary between ordinary and sacred space.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are Shintoism’s main beliefs?
Shinto emphasizes reverence for kami, ritual purity, harmony with nature, and sincerity, or makoto. Kegare is removed through purification rites called harae.
Who is god in Shinto?
Shinto has many kami rather than one monotheistic god. Amaterasu Ōmikami, the sun goddess, is regarded as the highest kami.
Is Spirited Away based on Shinto?
The film is strongly Shinto-inspired. Its bathhouse of kami, purification scenes, torii, sacred tree, and polluted river kami all draw on Shinto ideas.
When was Shintoism founded?
Shinto has no founding date because it developed organically from prehistoric Japanese nature and ancestor practices. The Kojiki of 712 and Nihon Shoki of 720 are its earliest written records.
Where did Shintoism originate, and who founded it?
Shinto originated on the Japanese archipelago. It has no known founder; it is Japan’s indigenous religious tradition.
