 Shinto:
Japan's Indigenous Religion
Japan Society, New York
October 5, 2002 |
A group of thirty
elementary, middle and high school teachers attended a one-day
workshop at Japan Society in New York City. The workshop,
Shinto: Japan's Indigenous Religion, consisted of two parts.
In the morning, Ryuichi Abe, Professor of Japanese Religions
and East Asian Studies at Columbia University, gave a presentation
of the concepts and rituals of Shinto. He concentrated on
the traditional "rites of passage" in a young person's
life, such as the first visitation to a shrine on the 50th
day after birth (hatsumiyamoude), the three visits to shrines
at the ages of three, five and seven years of age (shichigosan)
and the coming of age ceremony (seijin shiki) which takes
place at age twenty.
Professor
Abe also spoke of the close connection between this generation
of family and the generation of family that has past away.
Japanese religious traditions seek to console the souls of
departed family members and care for them until they reach
the stage of becoming and family deity (ujigami). Professor
Abe also spoke of the reverence of natural phenomena in Shinto
and the importance of festivals (matsuri) that take place
at certain seasons every year.
In
the afternoon the teachers observed the three-five-seven ceremony
(shichigosan) at the United Nations chapel on 1st Avenue and
44th Street across from the UN headquarters. Sponsored by
The International Shinto Foundation, the teachers had a very
special first-hand experience of this important ceremony for
families. Reverend Setsuko Umeda conducted the ceremony. Afterwards,
the teachers had a question and answer session with Reverend
Yoshimi Umeda.
The Education
Department of Japan Society, New York, has been offering workshops,
and thirty-hour courses since 1994 to help teachers in the
New York area understand Japanese culture. Each summer Japan
Society also take twelve teachers to Japan for a three-week
study tour. The programs are generously funded by The Freeman
Foundation.
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