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Shinto And Buddhism Similarities

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Japan’s culture and traditions were some of the most unique in the world and still are to this day. In the time of Ancient Japan there were many religions to suit anyone in its large population. Two of Japan’s most popular happen to have been Shinto and Buddhism. With nearly 125,000,000 of the population considering themselves Shinto and about 76 percent of the population made part of the Buddhist faith . With the two religions having had such a large influence on Japan’s residence and being the two most practiced among the people of ancient Japan it brings up the question of; were the two religions ever similar in anyway or if they simply had nothing in common and were completely different from each other. Although Buddhism and Shinto may …show more content…

Neither were so different that their followers have had a hard time getting along or coming to understand their faiths individual beliefs but they weren’t so similar that one of these religions would be forgotten due to the fact that they are too alike. Religions originating from Asia or India have long been known to incorporate many aspects from many different religions, such as Shintoism and Buddhism have. Creating a way for the religions to blend in with each other and contribute attributes from each of the religions as well as other philosophies. In contrast from each other, Shinto focused in worshiping nature and spirits of their ancestors with shrines and rituals whereas a Buddhists goal was to obtain enlightenment and earn the right to Nirvana and based on the teachings of Buddha. Unlike Buddhism, Shinto has no branches and exists as a single institution of ancient Japanese religion. In similar ways Shinto and Buddhism both take into consideration and take certain aspects of other religions into their own. In early history, philosophers put forward the idea that Kami were “transformations of the Buddha manifested in Japan.” As a result Shinto has shared their temple and rituals with the Buddhist faith and therefore has always been closely associated with Buddhism for

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