This is the glossary of Shinto

Shinto

or Shintoism, also kami-no-michi, is the indigenous spirituality of Japan and the Japanese people. It is a set of practices, to be carried out diligently, to establish a connection between present day Japan and its ancient past. Shinto practices were first recorded and codified in the written...

, including major terms the casual (or brand-new) reader might find useful in understanding articles on the subject. Words followed by an asterisk (*) are illustrated by an image in one of the photo galleries. Within definitions, words set in boldface are defined elsewhere in the glossary.

A

• Amaterasu Ōmikami
  Amaterasu Omikami
  , or is apart of the Japanese myth cycle and also a major deity of the Shinto religion. She is the goddess of the sun, but also of the universe. the name Amaterasu derived from Amateru meaning "shining in heaven." The meaning of her whole name, Amaterasu-ōmikami, is "the great August kami who...
  
   - The Sun Goddess, tutelary kami
  Chinjusha
  In Japanese is a Shinto shrine which enshrines a , that is a spirit protecting a given area, village, building or Buddhist temple. The Imperial Palace has its own tutelary shrine dedicated to the 21 guardian gods of Ise Shrine. Tutelary shrines are usually very small, but can sometimes be very...
  
   and ancestor of the Emperor
  Emperor of Japan
  The Emperor of Japan is, according to the 1947 Constitution of Japan, "the symbol of the state and of the unity of the people." He is a ceremonial figurehead under a form of constitutional monarchy and is head of the Japanese Imperial Family with functions as head of state. He is also the highest...
  
  , enshrined at Ise Shrine
  Ise Shrine
  is a Shinto shrine dedicated to goddess Amaterasu-ōmikami, located in the city of Ise in Mie prefecture, Japan. Officially known simply as , Ise Jingū is in fact a shrine complex composed of a large number of Shinto shrines centered on two main shrines, and ....
  
  .
• an
  An (Shinto)
  The is a small table or platform used during Shinto ceremonies to bear offerings. It may have four, eight or sixteen legs; the eight-legged variety, called , is the most common.- See also :...
  
  * - a small table or platform used during Shinto ceremonies to bear offerings. It may have four, eight or sixteen legs.
• aramitama
  Mitama
  The Japanese word refers to the spirit of a kami or the soul of a dead person. It is composed of two characters, the first of which, , is a simply a honorific. The second, means "spirit". The character pair 神霊, also read mitama, is used exclusively to refer to a kami's spirit...
  
   - The rough and violent side of a spirit (mitama).

B

• bekkū or betsugū (別宮) - Subsidiary shrine next to the honden, which may however enshrine an equally important kami.
• Benzaiten
  Benzaiten
  Benzaiten is the Japanese name for the Hindu goddess Saraswati. Worship of Benzaiten arrived in Japan during the 6th through 8th centuries, mainly via the Chinese translations of the Sutra of Golden Light, which has a section devoted to her...
  
   - Originally Buddhist goddess Sarasvati, now a syncretic
  Syncretism
  Syncretism is the combining of different beliefs, often while melding practices of various schools of thought. The term means "combining", but see below for the origin of the word...
  
   goddess member of the seven lucky gods
  Seven Lucky Gods
  The , commonly referred to in English as the Seven Lucky Gods, refer to the seven gods of good fortune in Japanese mythology and folklore. They are often the subject of netsuke carvings and other representations.Each has a traditional attribute:...
  
  . Her Shinto name is Ichikishima-hime-no-mikoto (市杵島姫命).
• bettō
  Betto
  is a term which originally indicated the head of an institution serving temporarily as the head of another one, but which came to mean also the full-time head of some institution...
  
   - before the shinbutsu bunri, when the Meiji period
  Meiji period
  The , also known as the Meiji era, is a Japanese era which extended from September 1868 through July 1912. This period represents the first half of the Empire of Japan.- Meiji Restoration and the emperor :...
  
   law forbade the mixing of Shinto and Buddhism
  Buddhism
  Buddhism is a religion and philosophy encompassing a variety of traditions, beliefs and practices, largely based on teachings attributed to Siddhartha Gautama, commonly known as the Buddha . The Buddha lived and taught in the northeastern Indian subcontinent some time between the 6th and 4th...
  
  , a bettō was a monk who performed Buddhist rites at a Shinto shrine.
• Bishamonten - Syncretic deity of Buddhist origin part of the Seven Lucky Gods.. A symbol of authority, he protects warriors.
• Bon
  Bon Festival
  or just is a Japanese Buddhist custom to honor the spirits of one's ancestors. This Buddhist-Confucian custom has evolved into a family reunion holiday during which people return to ancestral family places and visit and clean their ancestors' graves, and when the spirits of ancestors are supposed...
  
   - In theory a Buddhist festival, but in practice an ancestor and family festival part of Shinto.
• bunrei
  Bunrei
  is a Shinto technical term that indicates both the process of division of a Shinto kami to be re-enshrined somewhere else, and the divided spirit which is the result of the division.For details, see the article about the similar term Kanjō....
  
   (分霊) - process of division of a kami producing two complete copies of the original, one of which is then transferred to a new shrine through a process called kanjō
  Kanjo
  in Shinto terminology indicates a propagation process through which a kami, previously divided through a process called bunrei, is invited to another location and there reenshrined.- Evolution of the kanjō process :...
  
  .
• bunsha (分社) - Shrine part of a network headed by a famous shrine, from whence its kami was transferred through an operation called kanjō.
• butsudan
  Butsudan
  A butsudan is a shrine commonly found in temples and homes in Japanese Buddhist cultures. A butsudan is a wooden cabinet with doors that enclose and protect a gohonzon or religious icon, typically a statue or painting of a Buddha or Bodhisattva, or a "script" mandala scroll...
  
   - Buddhist altar found in Japanese homes enshrining a family's ancestors.

C

• chigi
  Chigi (architecture)
  , or are forked roof finials found in Japanese and Shinto Architecture. Chigi predate Buddhist influence and are an architectural element endemic to Japan. They are an important aesthetic aspect of Shinto shrines, where they are often paired with katsuogi, another type of roof ornamentation...
  
  * (千木) - Forked decorations common at the ends of the roof of shrines.
• chinju
  Chinjusha
  In Japanese is a Shinto shrine which enshrines a , that is a spirit protecting a given area, village, building or Buddhist temple. The Imperial Palace has its own tutelary shrine dedicated to the 21 guardian gods of Ise Shrine. Tutelary shrines are usually very small, but can sometimes be very...
  
   - the tutelary kami or tutelary shrine of a certain area or Buddhist temple
  Buddhist temples in Japan
  Along with Shinto shrines, Buddhist temples are the most numerous, famous, and important religious buildings in Japan.The term "Shinto shrine" is used in opposition to "Buddhist temple" to mirror in English the distinction made in Japanese between Shinto and Buddhist religious structures. In...
  
  .
• chinjusha
  Chinjusha
  In Japanese is a Shinto shrine which enshrines a , that is a spirit protecting a given area, village, building or Buddhist temple. The Imperial Palace has its own tutelary shrine dedicated to the 21 guardian gods of Ise Shrine. Tutelary shrines are usually very small, but can sometimes be very...
  
  * - a small shrine dedicated to the tutelary kami of an area or building.
• chōchin - paper lanterns always present at Shinto festivals (matsuri)
• chōzuya
  Chozuya
  A is a Shinto water ablution pavilion for a ceremonial purification rite known as temizu.Water-filled basins are used by worshipers for washing their left hands, right hands, mouth and finally the handle of the water ladle to purify themselves before approaching the main Shinto shrine or shaden...
  
   - see temizuya.

D

• Daijōsai (大嘗祭) - Ceremony marking the beginning of an Emperor's reign in which he offers first fruits to ancestors, including Amaterasu. The Emperor then shares a meal with the goddess.
• Dai-gongen
  Gongen
  During the era of shinbutsu shūgō , in Japan a During the era of shinbutsu shūgō (religious syncretism of kami and buddhas), in Japan a During the era of shinbutsu shūgō (religious syncretism of kami and buddhas), in Japan a ( was believed to be a Japanese kami which was really just the local...
  
   - see gongen.
• Daikokuten
  Daikokuten
  In Japan, Daikokuten , literally, god of great Darkness or Blackness, is one of the Seven Gods of Fortune. Daikokuten evolved from the Hindu deity, Shiva. The name is the Chinese and Japanese equivalent of Mahakala, another name for Shiva....
  
   - syncretic god part of the seven lucky gods fusing Buddhist god Mahakala
  Mahakala
  Mahākāla is a Dharmapala in Vajrayana Buddhism, and a deity in Chinese and Japanese Buddhism, particularly in the Vajrayana school. He is known as Daheitian in Chinese and Daikokuten in Japanese...
  
   and kami Ōkuninushi.
• Dōsojin
  Dosojin
  is a generic name for a type of Shinto kami popularly worshiped in Kantō and neighboring areas where, as tutelary deities of borders, they are believed to protect travelers and villages from epidemics and evil spirits...
  
   - group of kami and Buddhist gods protectors of roads, borders and other places of transition.

E

• Ebisu
  Ebisu
  Ebisu, also transliterated Yebisu, may refer to:* Ebisu , a god of Japanese mythology* Ebisu, Tokyo, a district of Tokyo, Japan* Ebisu Station , a train station located in Tokyo's Shibuya ward...
  
   - god of prosperity found at both temples and shrines. One of the Seven Lucky Gods.
• ema
  Ema (Shinto)
  are small wooden plaques on which Shinto worshippers write their prayers or wishes. The ema are then left hanging up at the shrine, where the kami receive them. They bear various pictures, often of animals or other Shinto imagery, and many have the word gan'i , meaning "wish", written along the side...
  
  * - small wooden plaques on which worshipers at shrines, as well as Buddhist temples, write their prayers or wishes.

F

• fox - See kitsune.
• Fuji (Mount)
  Mount Fuji
  is the highest mountain in Japan at . An active stratovolcano that last erupted in 1707–08, Mount Fuji lies about south-west of Tokyo, and can be seen from there on a clear day. Mount Fuji's exceptionally symmetrical cone is a well-known symbol of Japan and it is frequently depicted in art and...
  
   - The most famous among Japan's sacred mountains, it is inhabited by a kami called Konohanasakuya-hime
  Konohanasakuya-hime
  Konohanasakuya-hime , in Japanese mythology, is the blossom-princess and symbol of delicate earthly life. She is the daughter of the mountain god Ohoyamatsumi. She is often considered an avatar of Japanese life, especially since her symbol is the Sakura, She is the wife of Ninigi...
  
  .
• Fukkō Shintō (復興神道) - name synonymous with kokugaku
  Kokugaku
  Kokugaku was a National revival, or, school of Japanese philology and philosophy originating during the Tokugawa period...
  
  .

G

• go-hei
  Gohei
  , or are wooden wands, decorated with two shide used in Shinto rituals.The streamers are usually white, although they can also be gold, silver, or a mixture of several colors...
  
  * - also called onbe (御幣) or heisoku (幣束). A wooden wand decorated with two shide (zigzag paper streamers) and used in Shinto rituals as a yorishiro
  Yorishiro
  A in Shinto terminology is an object capable of attracting spirits called kami, thus giving them a physical space to occupy during religious ceremonies. Yorishiro are used during ceremonies to call the kami for worship. The word itself literally means approach substitute. Once a yorishiro...
  
  .
• gongen
  Gongen
  During the era of shinbutsu shūgō , in Japan a During the era of shinbutsu shūgō (religious syncretism of kami and buddhas), in Japan a During the era of shinbutsu shūgō (religious syncretism of kami and buddhas), in Japan a ( was believed to be a Japanese kami which was really just the local...
  
  
  • A Buddhist god that chooses to appear as a Japanese kami to take the Japanese to spiritual salvation.
  • Name sometimes used for shrines (e.g. "Tokusō Gongen") before the shinbutsu bunri.
• gongen-zukuri - a shrine structure in which the haiden
  Haiden (Shinto)
  In Shinto shrine architecture, the is the hall of worship or oratory. It is generally placed in front of the shrine's main sanctuary and often built on a larger scale than the latter. The haiden is often connected to the honden by a heiden, or hall of offerings...
  
  , the heiden and the honden
  Honden
  The , is the most sacred building at a Shinto shrine, intended purely for the use of the enshrined kami, usually symbolized by a mirror or sometimes by a statue. The building is normally in the rear of the shrine and closed to the general public. In front of its usually stands the haiden, or...
  
  are interconnected under the same roof in the shape of an H.*
• Goryō (御霊) - A soul, angry for having died violently or unhappy, which needs to be pacified through Buddhist rites or enshrinement, like Sugawara no Michizane
  Sugawara no Michizane
  , also known as Kan Shōjō , a grandson of Sugawara no Kiyotomo , was a scholar, poet, and politician of the Heian Period of Japan...
  
  .
• goshintai -　see shintai.
• Gozu-tennō (牛頭天王) - Buddhist name of kami Susanoo
  Susanoo
  , also known as is the Shinto god of the sea and storms. He is also considered to be ruler of Yomi.-Myths:In Japanese mythology, Susanoo, the powerful storm of Summer, is the brother of Amaterasu, the goddess of the sun, and of Tsukuyomi, the god of the moon. All three were born from Izanagi, when...
  
  , considered an avatar of Yakushi Nyorai.
• -gū (宮) - suffix of certain shrine names indicating it enshrines a member of the imperial family. Hachiman-gū shrines for instance enshrine Emperor Ojin
  Emperor Ojin
  , also known as Homutawake or , was the 15th emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession.No firm dates can be assigned to this emperor's life or reign, but he is conventionally considered to have reigned from 270 to 310....
  
  .

H

• Hachiman (Bosatsu)
  Hachiman
  In Japanese mythology, is the Japanese syncretic god of archery and war, incorporating elements from both Shinto and Buddhism. Although often called the god of war, he is more correctly defined as the tutelary god of warriors. He is also divine protector of Japan and the Japanese people...
  
   - Popular syncretic kami
  Kami
  is the Japanese word for the spirits, natural forces, or essence in the Shinto faith. Although the word is sometimes translated as "god" or "deity", some Shinto scholars argue that such a translation can cause a misunderstanding of the term...
  
   tutelary god of the warrior class. First enshrined at Usa Hachiman-gū, it consists of three separate figures, Emperor Ojin
  Emperor Ojin
  , also known as Homutawake or , was the 15th emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession.No firm dates can be assigned to this emperor's life or reign, but he is conventionally considered to have reigned from 270 to 310....
  
  , his mother and his wife Himegami.
• Hachiman-zukuri
  Hachiman-zukuri
  The is a traditional Japanese architectural style used at Hachiman shrines in which two parallel structures with gabled roofs are interconnected on the non-gabled side, forming one building which, when seen from the side, gives the impression of two. The front structure is called , the rear one ,...
  
   - Shinto architectural style in which two parallel structures with gabled roofs are interconnected on the non-gabled side forming a single building which, when seen from the side, gives the impression of two.
• haibutsu kishaku
  Haibutsu kishaku
  is a term that indicates a current of thought continuous in Japan's history which advocates the expulsion of Buddhism from Japan...
  
   - Literally "Destroy Buddha, kill Shakyamuni", it was the slogan of a Meiji period
  Meiji period
  The , also known as the Meiji era, is a Japanese era which extended from September 1868 through July 1912. This period represents the first half of the Empire of Japan.- Meiji Restoration and the emperor :...
  
   anti-Buddhist movement responsible for the destruction of thousands of Buddhist temples.
• haiden
  Haiden (Shinto)
  In Shinto shrine architecture, the is the hall of worship or oratory. It is generally placed in front of the shrine's main sanctuary and often built on a larger scale than the latter. The haiden is often connected to the honden by a heiden, or hall of offerings...
  
  * - literally "hall of prayer". A shrine building dedicated to prayer, and the only one of a shrine open to laity
  Laity
  In religious organizations, the laity comprises all people who are not in the clergy. A person who is a member of a religious order who is not ordained legitimate clergy is considered as a member of the laity, even though they are members of a religious order .In the past in Christian cultures, the...
  
  .
• Hakusan
  Mount Haku
  , or Mount Hakusan, is a potentially active volcano. The stratovolcano is located on the borders of Gifu, Fukui and Ishikawa prefectures in Japan. It is thought to have first been active 300,000 to 400,000 years ago, with the most recent eruption occurring in 1659...
  
   - collective name given to three mountains worshiped as kami and sacred to the Shugendō. Hakusan shrines are common all over Japan.
• hamaya (破魔矢) - Literally "evil breaking arrow". Arrows bought for good luck at shrines at New Year's and kept at home all year.
• han-honji suijaku
  Honji suijaku
  The term in Japanese religious terminology refers to a theory widely accepted until the Meiji period according to which Indian Buddhist deities choose to appear in Japan as native kami in order to more easily convert and save the Japanese...
  
   - theory initiated by Yoshida Kanetomo which reversed the standard honji suijaku theory, asserting Buddhist gods were just avatars of Japanese kami.
• haraegushi (祓串) - an ōnusa having an hexagonal or octagonal wand.
• harae (祓) - general term for rituals of purification in Shinto.
• hassoku-an - See an.
• Hatsumōde
  Hatsumode
  is the first shrine visit of the New Year in Japan. Some people visit a Buddhist temple instead. Many visit on the first, second, or third day of the year as most are off work on those days. Generally, wishes for the new year are made, new o-mamori are bought, and the old ones are returned to the...
  
   - the first shrine visit of the New Year
  Japanese New Year
  The is one of the most important annual festivals, with its own unique customs, and has been celebrated for centuries. Due to the importance of the holiday and the preparations required, the preceding days are quite busy, particularly the day before, known as Ōmisoka.The Japanese New Year has been...
  
  . Some shrines, for example Meiji Shrine
  Meiji Shrine
  ', located in Shibuya, Tokyo, is the Shinto shrine that is dedicated to the deified spirits of Emperor Meiji and his wife, Empress Shōken.-History:...
  
   in Harajuku
  Harajuku
  Harajuku is the common name for the area around Harajuku Station on the Yamanote Line in the Shibuya ward of Tokyo, Japan....
  
  , Tokyo, see millions of visitors in just a few days.
• heiden
  Heiden (Shinto)
  A is the part within a Shinto shrine's compound used to house offerings. It normally consists of a connecting section linking the honden to the haiden . If the shrine is built in the so-called Ishi-no-ma-zukuri style, its stone pavement is lower than the floor of the other two rooms, and it is...
  
   - a section of a shrine where offerings are presented to the gods.
• heihaku (幣帛) - see go-hei.
• himorogi
  Himorogi
  in Shinto terminology are sacred spaces or altars used to worship. In their simplest form, they are square areas with green bamboo or sakaki at the corners. These in turn support sacred ropes decorated with streamers called shide...
  
   - temporary sacred spaces or altars used to worship. Usually, himorogi are simply areas demarcated with green bamboo or sakaki
  Sakaki
  Sakaki is a flowering evergreen tree native to warm areas of Japan, Korea and mainland China. It can reach a height of 10 m. The leaves are 6–10 cm long, smooth, oval, leathery, shiny and dark green above, yellowish-green below, with deep furrows for the leaf stem. The bark is dark reddish...
  
   at the four corners supporting sacred border ropes called shimenawa
  Shimenawa
  Shimenawa are lengths of braided rice straw rope used for ritual purification in the Shinto religion. They can vary in diameter from a few centimetres to several metres, and are often seen festooned with shide...
  
  .
• hiōgi (檜扇) - a fan used originally by Heian aristocrats and now by Shinto priests.
• hirairi
  Hirairi
  is a Japanese traditional architectural structure, where the building has its main entrance on the side which runs parallel to the roof's ridge . The shinmei-zukuri, nagare-zukuri, hachiman-zukuri, and hie-zukuri Shinto architectural styles belong to this type...
  
   or hirairi-zukuri - a style of construction in which the building has its main entrance on the side which runs parallel to the roof's ridge (non gabled-side). The shinmei-zukuri
  Shinmei-zukuri
  is an ancient Japanese architectural style typical of Ise Grand Shrine's honden, the holiest of Shinto shrines. It is most common in Mie prefecture.-History:...
  
  , nagare-zukuri
  Nagare-zukuri
  The or is a traditional Shinto shrine architectural style characterized by a very asymmetrical gabled roof projecting outwards on one of the non-gabled sides, above the main entrance, to form a portico . This is the feature which gives it its name. It is the most common style among shrines all...
  
  , hachiman-zukuri
  Hachiman-zukuri
  The is a traditional Japanese architectural style used at Hachiman shrines in which two parallel structures with gabled roofs are interconnected on the non-gabled side, forming one building which, when seen from the side, gives the impression of two. The front structure is called , the rear one ,...
  
  , and hie-zukuri styles belong to this type.
• Hōhei/hōbei (奉幣) - offerings made to a kami, usually consisting in heihaku, but sometimes of jewels, money, weapons or other objects.
• hokora/hokura
  Hokora
  A is a miniature Shinto shrine either found on the precincts of a larger shrine and dedicated to folk kami, or on a street side, enshrining kami not under the jurisdiction of any large shrine...
  
   (祠, 神庫)
  • an extremely small shrine
  • One of the earliest words for shrine
• honden
  Honden
  The , is the most sacred building at a Shinto shrine, intended purely for the use of the enshrined kami, usually symbolized by a mirror or sometimes by a statue. The building is normally in the rear of the shrine and closed to the general public. In front of its usually stands the haiden, or...
  
   - literally "main hall". Also called shinden (神殿) ("divine hall"), the honden is the most sacred building of a shrine, intended for the exclusive use of the enshrined kami.
• honji suijaku
  Honji suijaku
  The term in Japanese religious terminology refers to a theory widely accepted until the Meiji period according to which Indian Buddhist deities choose to appear in Japan as native kami in order to more easily convert and save the Japanese...
  
   - theory dominant for centuries in Japan according to which Japanese kami are simply local manifestations of Indian gods.
• hongū (本宮) - only in a jingū, the main shrine enshrining the principal kami, as opposed to betsugū, sessha or massha. The term includes haiden, heiden and honden. See also honsha.
• honsha (本社) - main shrine of a shrine complex. It is followed hierarchically by sessha and massha.
• hotoke
  Hotoke
  The Japanese noun Note that the very same kanji 仏 in modern Japanese can be also read futsu, but is often used as an abbreviation for the word "furansu", or France...
  
   - Term meaning either Buddha or "dead soul". While Buddhist in origin, the term is used in the second sense by all Japanese religions.
• hyakudoishi (百度石) - literally "hundred times stone". Sometimes present as a point of reference for the hyakudomairi near the entrance of a shrine or Buddhist temple
  Buddhist temples in Japan
  Along with Shinto shrines, Buddhist temples are the most numerous, famous, and important religious buildings in Japan.The term "Shinto shrine" is used in opposition to "Buddhist temple" to mirror in English the distinction made in Japanese between Shinto and Buddhist religious structures. In...
  
  .
• hyakudomairi (百度参り) - literally "a hundred visits". A worshiper with a special prayer will visit the shrine a hundred times. After praying, he or she must go at least back to the entrance or around a hyakudo-ishi for the next visit to count as a separate visit.

I

• Ichikishima-hime-no-mikoto - See Benzaiten.
• imi (忌み) - Something to be avoided or polluting, particularly to a ceremony.
• Inari Ōkami* (稲荷大神) - the kami of fertility, rice, agriculture, foxes, industry, and worldly success. Inari shrines can be easily identified by the stone foxes which protect it.
  • imikotoba (忌み言葉) - words to be avoided in certain occasions. For example, one should not use words as "cut", "end" and the like at weddings because of bad omen or Buddhist terms at certain Shinto shrines or rites.
• ireisai (慰霊祭) - festival to remember and pacify the spirits of war dead which take place at Yasukuni Jinja and other shrines built to the purpose.
• Ise Shrine
  Ise Shrine
  is a Shinto shrine dedicated to goddess Amaterasu-ōmikami, located in the city of Ise in Mie prefecture, Japan. Officially known simply as , Ise Jingū is in fact a shrine complex composed of a large number of Shinto shrines centered on two main shrines, and ....
  
   - shrine in Mie prefecture
  Mie Prefecture
  is a prefecture of Japan which is part of the Kansai regions on Honshū island. The capital is the city of Tsu.- History :Until the Meiji Restoration, Mie prefecture was known as Ise Province and Iga Province....
  
   considered one of the holiest Shinto sites.
• Ise Shinto - See Watarai Shinto.
• itako/ichiko (神巫・巫子・市子) - blind female shamans from North-West Honshu which act as a link between human beings and kami, echoing what was probably the former role of miko in Shinto.
• iwakura (磐座)* - a rock where a kami has been invited to descend for worship, and which is therefore sacred. See the article yorishiro
  Yorishiro
  A in Shinto terminology is an object capable of attracting spirits called kami, thus giving them a physical space to occupy during religious ceremonies. Yorishiro are used during ceremonies to call the kami for worship. The word itself literally means approach substitute. Once a yorishiro...
  
  .
• iwasaka (岩境) - a stone altar or mound erected in the distant past to call a kami for worship. See the article yorishiro
  Yorishiro
  A in Shinto terminology is an object capable of attracting spirits called kami, thus giving them a physical space to occupy during religious ceremonies. Yorishiro are used during ceremonies to call the kami for worship. The word itself literally means approach substitute. Once a yorishiro...
  
  .
• Izanagi
  Izanagi
  is a deity born of the seven divine generations in Japanese mythology and Shinto, and is also referred to in the roughly translated Kojiki as "male-who-invites" or Izanagi-no-mikoto. It is also pronounced Izanaki-no-Okami....
  
   and Izanami
  Izanami
  In Japanese mythology, is a goddess of both creation and death, as well as the former wife of the god Izanagi-no-Mikoto. She is also referred to as Izanami-no-kami.-Goddess of Creation:...
  
   - Brother-and-sister couple which, according to the Nihongi
  Kojiki
  is the oldest extant chronicle in Japan, dating from the early 8th century and composed by Ō no Yasumaro at the request of Empress Gemmei. The Kojiki is a collection of myths concerning the origin of the four home islands of Japan, and the Kami...
  
    and Kojiki
  Kojiki
  is the oldest extant chronicle in Japan, dating from the early 8th century and composed by Ō no Yasumaro at the request of Empress Gemmei. The Kojiki is a collection of myths concerning the origin of the four home islands of Japan, and the Kami...
  
  , gave birth to Japan.

J

• jichinsai (地鎮祭) - lit. "ground pacify ceremony", ceremony held by a Shinto priest on a site before the start of construction on behalf of owners and workers to pacify and propitiate local spirits.
• jingi (神祇) - kami
• Jingikan - In the ritsuryō
  Ritsuryo
  is the historical law system based on the philosophies of Confucianism and Chinese Legalism in Japan. The political system in accord to Ritsuryō is called "Ritsuryō-sei"...
  
   system, the part of government responsible for matsuri.
• jingū (神宮) - a shrine enshrining a member of the Imperial family, as for example Meiji Jingū
  Meiji Shrine
  ', located in Shibuya, Tokyo, is the Shinto shrine that is dedicated to the deified spirits of Emperor Meiji and his wife, Empress Shōken.-History:...
  
   which enshrines the deified spirits of Emperor Meiji
  Emperor Meiji
  The or was the 122nd emperor of Japan according to the traditional order of succession, reigning from 3 February 1867 until his death...
  
   and his wife, Empress Shōken.
• Jingū-ji
  Jingū-ji
  Until the Meiji period , the Japanese were places of worship composed of a Buddhist temple and of a shrine dedicated to a local kami. These complexes were born when a temple was erected next to a shrine to help its kami. At the time, deities were thought to be also subjected to karma, and...
  
   - lit. "shrine temple". A temple whose existence is supposed to help the soul of the kami the shrine next to it enshrines. This kind of association was common until the Meiji period.
• jinja* (神社) - the most general name for a shrine, as in Yasukuni Jinja.
• Jinja Fukkyū (神社復旧) - lit- "jinja restoration", a reversal of the Meiji period
  Meiji period
  The , also known as the Meiji era, is a Japanese era which extended from September 1868 through July 1912. This period represents the first half of the Empire of Japan.- Meiji Restoration and the emperor :...
  
  's Jinja Gappei (lit. "jinja merger". Not to be confused with jinja fukushi.
• Jinja Fukushi (神社福祉) - lit. "jinja welfare", a form of unofficial, and therefore illegal, restoration of a merged shrine. See Jinja Gappei.
• Jinja Gappei (神社合併) - lit. "jinja merger" - Policy begun in the early '900, when as many as 83 000 shrines (half the total) were merged with the remainder and disappeared.
• Jinja Honchō - In English "Association of Shinto Shrines", an association that includes most (but not all) of the Shinto shrines in Japan.
• Jinja kaikan (神社会館) - a hotel-like building within large shrines used for weddings.
• Jinja Shintō (神社神道) - originally a synonym of State Shinto (Kokka Shinto), it is now a term criticized by specialists as problematic. When applied to post-war Shinto, it means the beliefs and practices associated to shrines, particularly those associated with the Jinja Honchō.
• Jisha
  Chinjusha
  In Japanese is a Shinto shrine which enshrines a , that is a spirit protecting a given area, village, building or Buddhist temple. The Imperial Palace has its own tutelary shrine dedicated to the 21 guardian gods of Ise Shrine. Tutelary shrines are usually very small, but can sometimes be very...
  
   - Lit. "temple-shrine". A temple's tutelary shrine. See chinjusha.
• jōe
  Jo-e
  is a garment worn in Japan by people attending religious ceremonies and activities, including but not limited to Buddhist and Shinto related occasions....
  
   (浄衣) - garment worn by kannushi during religious ceremonies. A silk kariginu.
• Junpai (巡拝) - The custom of visiting a fixed series of 33 or 88 shrines, temples or shrines and temples. Famous the 88 temple "Shikoku Pilgrimage
  Shikoku Pilgrimage
  The or is a multi-site pilgrimage of 88 temples associated with the Buddhist monk Kūkai on the island of Shikoku, Japan. A popular and distinctive feature of the island's cultural landscape, and with a long history, large numbers of pilgrims still undertake the journey for a variety of ascetic,...
  
  " circuit.

K

• kadomatsu
  Kadomatsu
  A is a traditional Japanese decoration of the New Year placed in pairs in front of homes to welcome ancestral spirits or kami of the harvest. They are placed after Christmas until January 7 and are considered temporary housing for kami...
  
   (門松) New Year decorations placed in pairs in front of homes to welcome the kami of harvest.
• kaguraden
  Kagura-den
  The , also called , is the building within a Shinto shrine where the sacred dance and music are offered to the kami during ceremonies....
  
  * (神楽殿) - a pavilion or stage dedicated to the performing of the kagura (sacred dance). Also called maidono (舞殿).
• kaeru (かえる) - lit. "frog". Because the word kaeru means both "frog" and "return home", many shrines sell small frog figurines as lucky charms.
• kagura
  Kagura
  - Fictional characters :*Kagura Tsuchimiya, the protagonist of Ga-rei*Kagura, an InuYasha character*Kagura Sohma , a Fruits Basket character*Kagura, an Azumanga Daioh character*Ten'nōzu Kagura, a Speed Grapher character...
  
   (神楽) - literally "sacred sance".
  • A type of Shinto dance with deep ties to the Emperor
    Emperor
    An emperor is a monarch, usually the sovereign ruler of an empire or another type of imperial realm. Empress, the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife or a woman who rules in her own right...
    
     and his family, accompanied by instruments. Also called mikagura (御神楽).
  • A type of Shinto dance performed at shrines during religious rites, with many local variants. Also called satokagura (里神楽).
• kakuriyo (隠り世) - lit. "hidden world", meaning either the world of kami and spirits, or the world of the dead (Yomi)
• kamadogami (竃神) - a kami which lives in people's ovens.
• kami
  Kami
  is the Japanese word for the spirits, natural forces, or essence in the Shinto faith. Although the word is sometimes translated as "god" or "deity", some Shinto scholars argue that such a translation can cause a misunderstanding of the term...
  
   (神) - term broadly meaning "spirit" or else "deity", but having with several separate meanings.
  • deities mentioned in Japanese mythologies and local deities protecting areas, villages and families.
  • unnamed and non-anthropomorphic spirits found in natural phenomena.
  • a general sense of sacred power.
  • According to a famous definition by Motoori Norinaga
    Motoori Norinaga
    was a Japanese scholar of Kokugaku active during the Edo period. He is probably the best known and most prominent of all scholars in this tradition.-Life:...
    
    , a kami is "any thing or phenomenon that produces the emotions of fear and awe, with no distinction between good and evil".
• Kamiarizuki (神有月) - lit. "month with gods"; lunar calendar
  Lunar calendar
  A lunar calendar is a calendar that is based on cycles of the lunar phase. A common purely lunar calendar is the Islamic calendar or Hijri calendar. A feature of the Islamic calendar is that a year is always 12 months, so the months are not linked with the seasons and drift each solar year by 11 to...
  
   month corresponding roughly to October. Because it is believed that in that month all kami go to Izumo Taisha
  Izumo Taisha
  is one of the most ancient and important Shinto shrines in Japan. No record gives the date of establishment. Located in Izumo, Shimane Prefecture, it is home to two major festivals. It is dedicated to the god Ōkuninushi , famous as the Shinto deity of marriage.A style of architecture,...
  
  , it is called "month with gods" at Izumo, Kannazuki ("month without gods" (神無月)) elsewhere.
• kamidana
  Kamidana
  Kamidana , is a miniature Shinto shrine found in many Japanese homes. The kamidana is typically placed high on a wall and contains a wide variety of items related to Shinto-style ceremonies, the most prominent of which is the shintai, most commonly in the form of a small circular mirror, though it...
  
  * (神棚) - literally "kami shelf". A miniature shrine placed or hung high on a wall in some Japanese homes.
• kamimukae (神迎え) - lit. "summoning the kami", the first part of a typical festival (matsuri). The spirit is usually invited to a himorogi (altar).
• kanjō
  Kanjo
  in Shinto terminology indicates a propagation process through which a kami, previously divided through a process called bunrei, is invited to another location and there reenshrined.- Evolution of the kanjō process :...
  
   - a process through which a kami (usually obtained dividing in two another kami through a process called bunrei
  Bunrei
  is a Shinto technical term that indicates both the process of division of a Shinto kami to be re-enshrined somewhere else, and the divided spirit which is the result of the division.For details, see the article about the similar term Kanjō....
  
  ) is transferred to a new shrine.
• Kannagara no Michi (惟神の道) - Another name for Shinto in use before World War II.
• Kannazuki - See Kamiarizuki.
• kannushi
  Kannushi
  A , also called , is the person responsible for the maintenance of a Shinto shrine as well as for leading worship of a given kami. The characters for kannushi are sometimes also read jinshu with the same meaning....
  
  * (神主) -　a Shinto priest.
• kasoegi (斗木) - see katsuogi.
• Kasuga (春日) - the tutelary kami (ujigami
  Ujigami
  An is a guardian god or spirit of a particular place in the Shinto religion of Japan.- Usage :The ujigami was prayed to for a number of reasons, including protection from sickness, success in endeavors, and good harvests.- History :...
  
  ) first just of the Fujiwara clan, then of the entire Yamato province
  Yamato Province
  was a province of Japan, located in Kinai, corresponding to present-day Nara Prefecture in Honshū. It was also called . At first, the name was written with one different character , and for about ten years after 737, this was revised to use more desirable characters . The final revision was made in...
  
  .
• Kasuga-zukuri
  Kasuga-zukuri
  is a traditional Shinto shrine architectural style which takes its name from Kasuga Taisha's honden. It is characterized by the use of a building just 1x1 ken in size with the entrance on the gabled end covered by a veranda. In Kasuga Taisha's case, the honden is just 1.9 m x 2.6 m.Supporting...
  
   (春日造) - The architectural style of Kasuga taisha.
• katsuogi
  Katsuogi
  or are short, decorative logs found on Japanese and Shinto architecture. They are placed at a right angle along the ridge of roofs, and are usually featured in religious or imperial architecture. Katsuogi predate Buddhist influence and is an architectural element endemic to Japan. They are...
  
  * (鰹木, 勝男木, 葛緒木) - short decorative poles on a shrine's roof set at a right angle to the roof's ridgepole.
• kegare
  Kegare
  is the Japanese term for a state of pollution and defilement, important particularly in Shinto as a religious term. Typical causes of kegare are the contact with any form of death, childbirth , disease and menstruation. In Shinto kegare is a form of tsumi , which needs to be somehow remedied by the...
  
   (穢れ) - defilement due to natural phenomena, for example the contact with dead bodies.
• kibitsu-zukuri
  Kibitsu-zukuri
  ., or is a traditional Japanese Shinto architectural style characterized by four dormer gables, two per side. on the roof of a very large honden . The gables are set at a right angle to the main roof ridge, and the honden is part of a single complex also including a haiden...
  
   (吉備津造) - the architectural style of Kibitsu Jinja
  Kibitsu Jinja
  is a Shinto shrine in Okayama, Okayama Prefecture, Japan. The Honden-Haiden is a National Treasure and the sole exemplar of the kibitsu-zukuri style of architecture, although the Soshidō of Hokekyō-ji is now believed to have been modeled thereon.-Buildings:...
  
   in Okayama prefecture
  Okayama Prefecture
  is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūgoku region on Honshū island. The capital is the city of Okayama.- History :During the Meiji Restoration, the area of Okayama Prefecture was known as Bitchū Province, Bizen Province and Mimasaka Province.- Geography :...
  
  , characterized by a huge honden divided in three parts with an interior painted in vermilion, black and gold.
• kitsune
  Kitsune
  is the Japanese word for fox. Foxes are a common subject of Japanese folklore; in English, kitsune refers to them in this context. Stories depict them as intelligent beings and as possessing magical abilities that increase with their age and wisdom. Foremost among these is the ability to assume...
  
  * (狐) - statue or image of a fox, animal believed to have magical powers and to be a messenger to kami Inari
  Inari (mythology)
  is the Japanese kami of fertility, rice, agriculture, foxes, industry and worldly success and one of the principal kami of Shinto. Represented as male, female, or androgynous, Inari is sometimes seen as a collective of three or five individual kami...
  
  . Inari shrines are always protected by statues of foxes, sometimes wearing red votive bibs.
• kō (講) - a lay worship group focusing on a particular kami or sacred location which may perform pilgrimages and other rites.
• kōdō (皇道) - lit. the Imperial Way, or Shinto as defined by post-Meiji nationalist.
• Kōgakkan University
  Kogakkan University
  is a private university at Ise, Mie, Japan. The predecessor of the school was founded in 1882, and it was chartered as a university in 1940.- External links :*...
  
   (皇学館大学) - University located near Ise Shrine
  Ise Shrine
  is a Shinto shrine dedicated to goddess Amaterasu-ōmikami, located in the city of Ise in Mie prefecture, Japan. Officially known simply as , Ise Jingū is in fact a shrine complex composed of a large number of Shinto shrines centered on two main shrines, and ....
  
  , together with Tokyo's Kokugakuin University the only one authorized to train Shinto priests.
• Kokka Shinto (国家神道) - Japanese translation of the English term State Shinto created in 1945 by the US occupation forces to define the post-Meiji religious system in Japan.
• Kokugakuin University
  Kokugakuin University
  Kokugakuin University is a private university, whose main office is located in Tokyo's Shibuya district...
  
   - Tokyo university which is, together with Ise's Kōgakkan University, the only one authorized to train Shinto priests.
• komainu
  Komainu
  , often called lion-dogs in English, are statue pairs of lion-like creatures either guarding the entrance or the inner shrine of many Japanese Shinto shrines or kept inside the inner shrine itself, where they are not visible to the public. The first type, born during the Edo period, is called , the...
  
  * (狛犬) - stone warden dogs usually present at the entrance of a shrine.
• kotodama
  Kotodama
  refers to the Japanese belief that mystical powers dwell in words and names. English translations include "soul of language", "spirit of language", "power of language", "power word", "magic word", and "sacred sound"...
  
   or kototama (言霊) - supernatural power possessed by words capable of influencing matter.
• Kunitokotachi-no-mikoto
  Kunitokotachi
  In Japanese mythology, is one of the two gods born from "something like a reed that arose from the soil" when the earth was chaotic. In the Nihon Shoki, he is named "Kuni-toko-tachi no mikoto" and is the first of the first three divinities born after heaven and earth were born out of chaos, and...
  
   - kami considered to be the most important by Yoshida Kanetomo
  Yoshida Kanetomo
  was an Japanese Shinto priest in the Momoyama period. He was a seminal figure in the evolution of a coherent descriptive and interpretive schema of Shinto ritual and mythology.-Career:...
  
   and considered important also by Watarai Shinto.
• Kyōha Shinto (教派神道) - lit. Sect Shinto, a label applied to certain sects by the Meiji government to give them an official status.

M

• magatama
  Magatama
  Magatama , are curved beads which first appeared in Japan during the Jōmon period.They are often found inhumed in mounded tumulus graves as offerings to deities . They continued to be popular with the ruling elites throughout the Kofun Period of Japan, and are often romanticised as indicative of...
  
  * (勾玉 or 曲玉) - a comma shaped jewel often used as a yorishiro
  Yorishiro
  A in Shinto terminology is an object capable of attracting spirits called kami, thus giving them a physical space to occupy during religious ceremonies. Yorishiro are used during ceremonies to call the kami for worship. The word itself literally means approach substitute. Once a yorishiro...
  
  .
• maidono (舞殿) - see kaguraden.
• massha
  Setsumatsusha
  and , also called are small or miniature shrines having a deep historical relationship with a more important shrine or with the kami it enshrines, and fall under that shrine's jurisdiction. The two terms used to have legally different meanings, but are today synonyms...
  
  * (末社) - a synonym of sessha.
• miko
  Miko
  is a Japanese term that anciently meant a "female shaman, spirit medium" who conveyed oracles from kami , and currently means a "shrine maiden; virgin consecrated to a deity" who serves at Shinto shrines.-Word:...
  
  * (巫女, 神子, 巫)
  • A woman who helps kannushi in their work.
  • A woman possessing magic powers and capable of giving oracles (shamanness).
• mikoshi
  Mikoshi
  A is a divine palanquin . Shinto followers believe that it serves as the vehicle to transport a deity in Japan while moving between main shrine and temporary shrine during a festival or when moving to a new shrine...
  
  * (神輿) - a portable shrine.
• mitama
  Mitama
  The Japanese word refers to the spirit of a kami or the soul of a dead person. It is composed of two characters, the first of which, , is a simply a honorific. The second, means "spirit". The character pair 神霊, also read mitama, is used exclusively to refer to a kami's spirit...
  
   - The spirit of a kami or the soul of a dead person.
• miya (宮) - often defines a shrine enshrining a special kami or a member of the Imperial household, for example an Empress, but can also simply mean shrine.
• mori (杜) - any place where a kami is present, for example a sacred forest or a shrine.

O

• Ōkuninushi - see Daikokuten

• omamori
  Omamori
  Omamori are Japanese amulets dedicated to particular Shinto deities as well as Buddhist figures. The word mamori means protection, with omamori being the sonkeigo form of the word, "to protect.".-Design and function:...
  
   (お守り) - amulets on sale at shrines and temples for particular purposes, for example health or success in business.
• omikuji
  Omikuji
  Omikuji are random fortunes written on strips of paper at Shinto shrines and Buddhist temples in Japan. Literally "sacred lot", these are usually received by making a small offering and randomly choosing one from a box, hoping for the resulting fortune to be good...
  
  * (御御籤 or 御神籤) - oracles written on strips of paper often found at shrines wrapped around tree branches.
• Ōnusa
  Onusa
  An or simply is a wooden wand used in Shinto rituals. It is decorated with many shide . When the shide are attached to an hexagonal or octagonal staff, it can be also called...
  
   (大幣) or haraegushi (祓串) - wooden wands used in rituals. Decorated with many shide, they are waved left and right during ceremonies.
• Ōyashiro (大社) - see Taisha.

S

• saisen (賽銭) - offerings from worshipers. The box collecting the offerings is called saisenbako (賽銭箱) (literally saisen box), usually situated near the entrance, or in front of the halls of a shrine, as well as of a Buddhist temple.
• sakaki
  Sakaki
  Sakaki is a flowering evergreen tree native to warm areas of Japan, Korea and mainland China. It can reach a height of 10 m. The leaves are 6–10 cm long, smooth, oval, leathery, shiny and dark green above, yellowish-green below, with deep furrows for the leaf stem. The bark is dark reddish...
  
   (榊) - a flowering
  Flowering plant
  The flowering plants , also known as Angiospermae or Magnoliophyta, are the most diverse group of land plants. Angiosperms are seed-producing plants like the gymnosperms and can be distinguished from the gymnosperms by a series of synapomorphies...
  
   evergreen
  Evergreen
  In botany, an evergreen plant is a plant that has leaves in all seasons. This contrasts with deciduous plants, which completely lose their foliage during the winter or dry season.There are many different kinds of evergreen plants, both trees and shrubs...
  
   tree
  Tree
  A tree is a perennial woody plant. It is most often defined as a woody plant that has many secondary branches supported clear of the ground on a single main stem or trunk with clear apical dominance. A minimum height specification at maturity is cited by some authors, varying from 3 m to...
  
   native to Japan
  Japan
  Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
  
   often used in rituals, for example to make tamagushi.
• sandō
  Sandō
  A in Japanese architecture is the road approaching either a Shinto shrine or a Buddhist temple. Its point of origin is usually straddled in the first case by a Shinto torii, in the second by a Buddhist sanmon, gates which mark the beginning of the shrine's or temple territory...
  
  * (参道)- the approach leading from a torii to a shrine. The term is also used sometimes at Buddhist temples too.
• sanpai sahō (参拝作法)− the way in which the Japanese worship at shrines, bowing twice, clapping twice, then bowing one last time.
• seisatsu* (制札) - a signboard containing announcements and rules for worshipers.
• sessha
  Setsumatsusha
  and , also called are small or miniature shrines having a deep historical relationship with a more important shrine or with the kami it enshrines, and fall under that shrine's jurisdiction. The two terms used to have legally different meanings, but are today synonyms...
  
  * (摂社)- smaller shrine housing a kami having a strong relationship with that of the honsha. A synonym of massha.
• shaku
  Shaku (ritual baton)
  is the Japanese name for a flat ritual baton or scepter of Chinese origin. Usually made of woods like Japanese yew, holly, cherry, sakaki or Japanese cedar, the shaku is often seen in portraits of shoguns and noblemen but is now used mostly by Shinto priests .The use of the shaku as a ritual baton...
  
   (笏)- a flat baton often seen in portraits of noblemen and samurai, but also used by kannushi. Has a purely decorative function.
• shamusho (社務所)- a shrine's administrative office. It often sells omamori
  Omamori
  Omamori are Japanese amulets dedicated to particular Shinto deities as well as Buddhist figures. The word mamori means protection, with omamori being the sonkeigo form of the word, "to protect.".-Design and function:...
  
   and other goods.
• shide
  Shide (shinto)
  is a zigzag-shaped paper streamer, often seen attached to shimenawa or tamagushi, and used in Shinto rituals. A popular ritual is using a haraegushi, or "lightning wand", named for the zig-zag shide paper that adorns the wand. A similar wand, used by miko for purification and blessing, is the gohei...
  
  * (垂, 紙垂, 四手) - a zigzag-shaped paper streamer, often attached to a shimenawa or tamagushi and used in rituals.
• shimboku* (神木) - a tree considered divine, usually surrounded by a shimenawa.
• shimenawa
  Shimenawa
  Shimenawa are lengths of braided rice straw rope used for ritual purification in the Shinto religion. They can vary in diameter from a few centimetres to several metres, and are often seen festooned with shide...
  
  * (標縄・注連縄・七五三縄) - lit. "enclosing rope". A length of braided rice straw rope used for ritual purification.
• shinbutsu bunri
  Shinbutsu Bunri
  The term in Japanese indicates the forbidding by law of the amalgamation of kami and buddhas made during the Meiji Restoration. It also indicates the effort made by the Japanese government to create a clear division between native kami beliefs and Buddhism on one side, and Buddhist temples and...
  
   (神仏分離) - the forbidding by law of the syncretism
  Syncretism
  Syncretism is the combining of different beliefs, often while melding practices of various schools of thought. The term means "combining", but see below for the origin of the word...
  
   of Shinto and Buddhism, and the effort to create a clear division between Shinto and Buddhism on one side, and Buddhist temples and Shinto shrines on the other.
• shintai
  Shintai
  In Shinto, , or when the honorific prefix go- is used, are physical objects worshiped at or near Shinto shrines as repositories in which spirits or kami reside...
  
   (神体)　- lit. "divine body". A sacred object, usually a mirror, a jewel, or a sword, which represents the kami for worship.
• shrine - English word which translates several more specialized Japanese words (see article Shinto shrine). Any structure housing ("enshrining") a kami
  Kami
  is the Japanese word for the spirits, natural forces, or essence in the Shinto faith. Although the word is sometimes translated as "god" or "deity", some Shinto scholars argue that such a translation can cause a misunderstanding of the term...
  
  . See also gongen, hokora, jinja, Jungū, massha, miya, mikoshi, mori, Taisha, yashiro.
• shinbutsu kakuri
  Shinbutsu kakuri
  The term in Japanese Buddhist terminogy refers to the tendency in medieval and early modern Japan to keep some kami separate from Buddhism. While some kami were integrated in Buddhism, others were kept systematically away from Buddhism. This phenomenon had significant consequences for Japanese...
  
   (神仏隔離) − the tendency in medieval and early modern Japan to keep particular kami separate from any form or manifestation of Buddhism.
• shinbutsu shūgō
  Shinbutsu Shugo
  , literally "syncretism of kami and buddhas" is the syncretism of Buddhism and kami worship which was Japan's religion until the Meiji period...
  
   (神仏習合) - syncretism of Buddhism and local religious beliefs, the normal state of things before the shinbutsu bunri.
• Shūha Shintō (宗派神道) - see Kyōha Shintō.
• State Shinto
  State Shinto
  has been called the state religion of the Empire of Japan, although it did not exist as a single institution and no "Shintō" was ever declared a state religion...
  
   (国家神道 Kokka Shintō) - term first used after World War II to broadly classify Shinto ideals, rituals and institutions created by the pre-War government to promote the divinity of the emperor and the uniqueness of Japan (kokutai
  Kokutai
  Kokutai is a politically loaded word in the Japanese language, translatable as "sovereign", "national identity; national essence; national character" or "national polity; body politic; national entity; basis for the Emperor's sovereignty; Japanese constitution". "Sovereign" is perhaps the most...
  
  ).

T

• Taisha (大社) - literally "great shrine", this term is usually part of the official name of a shrine, as for example in Izumo Taisha
  Izumo Taisha
  is one of the most ancient and important Shinto shrines in Japan. No record gives the date of establishment. Located in Izumo, Shimane Prefecture, it is home to two major festivals. It is dedicated to the god Ōkuninushi , famous as the Shinto deity of marriage.A style of architecture,...
  
  .
• taisha-zukuri
  Taisha-zukuri
  is the oldest Shinto shrine style. Named after Izumo Taisha's honden , like Ise Grand Shrine's shinmei-zukuri style it features a bark roof decorated with poles called chigi and katsuogi, plus archaic features like gable-end pillars and a single central pillar...
  
   (大社造) - the oldest style of shrine architecture used for example at Izumo Taisha
  Izumo Taisha
  is one of the most ancient and important Shinto shrines in Japan. No record gives the date of establishment. Located in Izumo, Shimane Prefecture, it is home to two major festivals. It is dedicated to the god Ōkuninushi , famous as the Shinto deity of marriage.A style of architecture,...
  
   and thought to resemble that of ancient habitations.
• tamagaki
  Tamagaki
  A is a fence surrounding a Japanese Shinto shrine, a sacred area or an imperial palace. Believed to have been initially just a brushwood barrier of trees, tamagaki have since been made of a variety of materials including wood, stone and — in recent years — concrete...
  
   (玉垣) - The fence delimiting the sacred soil of a shrine.
• tamagushi
  Tamagushi
  is a form of Shinto offering made from a sakaki-tree branch decorated with shide strips of washi paper, silk, or cotton. At Japanese weddings, funerals, miyamairi and other ceremonies at Shinto shrines, tamagushi are ritually presented to the kami by parishioners or kannushi priests.-Linguistic...
  
  * (玉串) - literally "jewel skewer". A form of offering made from a sakaki
  Sakaki
  Sakaki is a flowering evergreen tree native to warm areas of Japan, Korea and mainland China. It can reach a height of 10 m. The leaves are 6–10 cm long, smooth, oval, leathery, shiny and dark green above, yellowish-green below, with deep furrows for the leaf stem. The bark is dark reddish...
  
  -tree branch and strips of paper, silk, or cotton.
• temizuya* (手水舎) - a fountain near the entrance of a shrine or at a Buddhist temple where worshipers can cleanse their hands and mouths before worship.
• torii
  Torii
  A is a traditional Japanese gate most commonly found at the entrance of or within a Shinto shrine, where it symbolically marks the transition from the profane to the sacred...
  
  * (鳥居)- the iconic Shinto gate at the entrance of a sacred area, usually a shrine.
• tōrō
  Tōrō
  A "灯篭" is just a simplified form of "灯籠". is a Japanese lantern made of stone, wood, or metal traditional in the Far East. In China extant specimen are very rare, and in Korea too they are not as common as in Japan. In Japan, tōrō were originally used only in Buddhist temples, where they lined and...
  
   (灯籠) - a lantern at a shrine or Buddhist temple
  Buddhist temples in Japan
  Along with Shinto shrines, Buddhist temples are the most numerous, famous, and important religious buildings in Japan.The term "Shinto shrine" is used in opposition to "Buddhist temple" to mirror in English the distinction made in Japanese between Shinto and Buddhist religious structures. In...
  
  .
• tsumairi
  Tsumairi
  is a Japanese traditional architectural structure where the building has its main entrance on one or both of the . The shinmei-zukuri, nagare-zukuri, hachiman-zukuri, and hie-zukuri Shinto architectural styles all belong to this type....
  
   or tsumairi-zukuri(妻入・妻入造) - a style of construction in which the building has its main entrance on the side which runs perpendicular to the roof's ridge (gabled side). The taisha-zukuri
  Taisha-zukuri
  is the oldest Shinto shrine style. Named after Izumo Taisha's honden , like Ise Grand Shrine's shinmei-zukuri style it features a bark roof decorated with poles called chigi and katsuogi, plus archaic features like gable-end pillars and a single central pillar...
  
  , sumiyoshi-zukuri
  Sumiyoshi-zukuri
  is an ancient Shinto shrine architectural style which takes its name from Sumiyoshi Taisha's honden in Ōsaka. As in the case of the taisha-zukuri and shinmei-zukuri styles, its birth predates the arrival in Japan of Buddhism.-History:...
  
  , ōtori-zukuri and kasuga-zukuri
  Kasuga-zukuri
  is a traditional Shinto shrine architectural style which takes its name from Kasuga Taisha's honden. It is characterized by the use of a building just 1x1 ken in size with the entrance on the gabled end covered by a veranda. In Kasuga Taisha's case, the honden is just 1.9 m x 2.6 m.Supporting...
  
   architectural styles belong to this type.

Y

• yashiro (社)- generic term for shrine, similar to jinja.
• yorishiro
  Yorishiro
  A in Shinto terminology is an object capable of attracting spirits called kami, thus giving them a physical space to occupy during religious ceremonies. Yorishiro are used during ceremonies to call the kami for worship. The word itself literally means approach substitute. Once a yorishiro...
  
  (依り代)- an object capable of attracting kami for a ceremony. Trees, rocks, magatama, gohei, even persons can be a yorishiro.
• yorimashi (憑坐) - a human yorishiro, in particular a child or woman, used by a faith healer for oracles.