History of Shinto

 


Detached geographical position of Japan and its unique natural environment greatly influenced the emergence and history of Shinto religion.


The most ancient origins of Shinto are connected with animistic Koshinto beliefs in prehistoric Japan which are traced back even to 12,000 BC. The ancient Japan culture was unusually complex. There are no written sources from this era, but elaborate pottery and jewelry were common in Japan several thousand years ago. This was the time of cultural and economic prosperity as well as the creation of the distinctive Japanese spirituality.


In the beginning of the first millennium the evolution of ethnical Japanese religious traditions was dramatically influenced by the expansion of Buddhism from the continent. The Buddhist philosophy and rituals significantly reshaped and enriched the traditional ancient Koshinto religion.