THE WAY OF THE KAMI-Kami Belief in Japanese Culture
In 1281, when Japan was attacked by the Mongols, a great storm broke out in the ocean. At the end of this dreadful storm, the Mongol ships sink and Japan escapes the attack and thus the Mongol invasion. They call this storm God’s storm “Kami-kaze (神 風)”. Because they believe that Japan is protected by the Kami (神).
The indigenous and national religion of the Japanese is Shintoism (神道) / Kami no Michi. The word Shinto is a combination of two kanji: “神” shin/kami (ie “gods” or “spirits”) and “道” tō / michi (ie “path”). So the term means “the way of the gods/spirits” (Kami no Michi).
Norinaga Motorii defines Kami as a holy spirit that rules the seasons, rain, and wind. Kami can take the form of concepts and things like trees, rivers, mountains, abundance. The most prominent features are;
It has no body or shape.
He comes to the place called.
He rules, he rules.
It is scary.
According to Lafeadio Hearn, all human intentions and behaviors are the work of Kami. Everything that dies becomes Kami, integrates with Kami. Essentially, the Japanese do not see Kami as separate from the human self. It is not somewhere transcendent, far from beings. Humans have Kami character, therefore human beings have the ability to see God-holiness.
The Japanese see Kami not only as an entity but as a ubiquitous active, functional entity. The place of the Kami is in the center of events. According to Lafayette, the Japanese were not born, they are descendants of beings descending from heaven to earth. They are different from the others. They were not born, they became Japanese.
Takamagahara is the real place of Kami. Kami descended from that place for the rule of the earth. Emperors were sent to rule the earth and are descendants of the Kami. Therefore, emperors are sacred in Japan and their main duty is to worship the Kami.
However, the people also regard the holy emperor as a transcendent being. Because it symbolizes the country’s reason for existence, it represents harmony and wholeness. According to Kitaroo Nisida, the imperial family, which remains unchanged and stands forever, occupies a special temporal and spatial place in Japanese history. According to the Japanese constitution (1946), the Emperor is the symbol of the unity of the Japanese State and nation.
At this point, the events experienced by Izanagi and Izanami in Japanese Creation Mythology are important. The couple Izanagi and Izanami are assigned by the Sky God Amatsukami to establish a country on earth similar to the one in the sky. The children born from the marriage of this couple have led to the formation of Japan. Among the born children, there are many islands such as Awaji Island, Honshū, Shikoku, Kyūshū, and gods who created all the substances in the universe such as stone, tree, sea, water, wind, mountain, field, and fire.
Even the birth of Japan is reported as a Kami-led natural event. Therefore, it is very common for the Japanese to attribute holiness, respect, and value to nature and natural phenomena. It is believed that every kami has a unique character and all kinds of events in nature are interpreted according to the moods of the Kami. Festivals are held to appease or glorify the angry Kami.
In Shintoism, the way of the Kami, everything is under the rule of the Kami, every life is a part of Kami’s plan. If anyone goes astray, this is again the surprise of the Kami. Somehow, all roads lead to Kami. Matsuo Bashō’s famous poem summarizes the event;
“Look into the shadow of the moon, all beliefs (ways) lead to the same place.”
I prepared this article using the notes and various readings I took from Günhan Özhan’s book “Japon Zihniyeti”.
