Ancient Japanese Culture Research Paper

Words: 952
Pages: 4

Ancient Japanese Culture
The most important things that teenagers today should know about ancient Japanese culture is their myths, their art, their religious beliefs and their classical music. Knowing about their myths gives an idea of how they explained the world to themselves and knowing about their religious beliefs help us to understand their values. It is also important to know about their entertainment, such as art and music, which help us to understand what the ancient Japanese were creatively interested in.
One myth that the ancient Japanese believed explained how the world was created. According to “Kojiki”, the oldest Japanese book, written in 712 AD, the world begins with the birth of seven deities. After them, five couples of deities
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It was horizontal illustrated narrative handscrolls. They conveyed visually the emotional content of each scene. In the second half of the century, the “Ban Dainagon Ekotoba” became popular. It emphasizes figures in action and motion depicted in rapidly executed brush strokes and thin but vibrant colors. E-maki is also divided into otoko-e (men’s pictures) and onna-e (women's picture’s) styles of painting. Another type of art called “Kamakura” was created to satisfy a new audience. This was during the war of 1180 between the two most powerful warrior clans, the Taira and the Minamoto. Minamoto won the war and established a government at the seaside village called “Kamakura”, it remained there until 1333. The new power from warrior class instead of nobility was what caused Kamakura art. Kamakura art was for men devoted to the skills of warfare, priests committed to making Buddhism available to illiterate commoners, and conservatives, the nobility and some members of the priesthood who regretted the declining power of the …show more content…
Practitioners have diverse beliefs, a standard language, and practice. Shinto is the largest religion in japan though it has different meanings. It has over 81,000 shrines and 85,000 priests in japan. There are different types of Shinto including “Shrine Shinto”, “Imperial Household Shinto”, “Folk Shinto”, “Sect Shinto”, and “Koshinto”. Koshinto means “old Shinto” and is based on Ainu religion and Ryukyuan practices. Sect Shinto was created in the 1890’s to separate government-owned shrines from local organized religious communities. Folk Shinto includes the folk beliefs in deities and spirits, such as divination, spirit possession, and shamanic healing. Imperial Household Shinto is exclusively for the Imperial Family and shrine Shinto is the main tradition of Shinto where people gather at local shrines to worship and participate in