Reckoning the 75 years of State Shinto

            If Shinto origins go back before the time of metal technology (bronze; iron-age saws) so that structures were ad hoc instead of elaborate confections made by tool-rich Miya Daiku (shrine carpenters), say Yayoi Period (300 BCE - 300 CE) or earlier, then the 75 years of central government take-over from local kami and local parishioners from 1870 until August 15, 1945 is just a small part of the whole story, in fact just 3% or less. And yet there was great consequence in the forced separation of Shinto and Buddhist buildings and practices, the consolidation of many small shrines into larger ones, the establishment of seminaries in Tokyo (Kokugakuin) and in Ise (Kogakkan University), and the income structure of monies solicited and other money given out, based on rankings of shrine hierarchy. A certain amount of uniformity in terms, ideas, and rituals was created. And some parts were harnessed to ethno-nationial purposes of unifying and motivating people to fight and die. But when that system stopped with the surrender to end the war, some of the old feelings (not nationalism) began to come back as people looked at the land and at their lives and desired a way to related these to each other - land and life.

This photo shows the scars left when the Hachiman shrine in south central Echizen City (then known at Takefu city) was carved with the rank of "village shrine" at the top of the stone  post. When that system was abolished, some effort to fill-in the carved surface resulted in the present look. It is a visual metaphor of the events of the past few generations: a governmental system that labeled and scarred the local worship place. It has been forgotten, but faint traces of the scars remain visible.

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Taken in: Japan / Takefu-shi (show map)

Taken on: May 9, 2023

Tags:

samsung a21

takefu

915

武生

越前市

神様

神道

随神

shinto

鳥居

shide

Hokora

祠

神庫

ujigami

ujiko

氏神

state shinto

village shrine

shrine rank

hachiman jinja

hachiman shrine

八幡神社 « less

Sets appears in: • Japan2023spring • nation state

Camera: samsung SM-S215DL, f/1.8, 1/1000 sec, 4mm, ISO 111 (more info) (hide info)

Camera:	samsung SM-S215DL
Aperture:	f/1.8
Exposure Time:	0.001 sec (1/1000)
Focal Length:	4mm
ISO:	111
Flash:	No Flash
Metering Mode:	Unknown
White Balance:	Auto
Color Space:	Uncalibrated
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