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Afterlife in Buddhism and Shintoism

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1.

AFTERLIFE

In Shintoism and Buddhism
2.

WHAT IS SHINTOISM

  • A traditional Japanese religion which originally lacked a central structure
  • "Shinto" literally means "the way of kami," kami referring to the divine or mystique
  • Centered around worship of ancestral spirits
3.

WHAT IS BUDDHISM?

  • Buddhism is a religion which began with Siddhartha Gautama's reflections on life and suffering
  • Reform of Hinduism
  • Belief in Middle Way, finding median between pain and pleasure in all elements of life
4.

CORE SHINTO BELIEFS

  • No guiding dogmas, official scriptures, or founder
  • Centered around kami, spirits and forces of nature
  • Everything intelligent may be considered kami
  • Japanese emperor is believed to be descendant of sun god and performed many rituals
Photo by Worlds In Focus
5.

KAMI

  • Describe spirits and deities
  • Everything is considered to be kami
  • Kami are one with nature and often Shinto gods are linked with natural forces
  • Kami is a sort of celebrated life essence and purity is sacred
Photo by NeeZhom Photomalaya
6.

"I do not yet understand the meaning of the word 'kami'. In the most general sense, it refers to all divine beings of heaven and earth that appear in the classics. More particularly, the kami are the spirits that abide in and are worshipped at the shrines."
-Motoori Norinaga, Japanese Scholar

7.

CORE BUDDHIST BELIEFS

  • Four Noble Truths make up heart of beliefs
  • They describe the way suffering must be handled, and is caused by desire
  • Also they establish that achieving Nirvana will end suffering
  • Following the Eightfold Path allows this to occur
8.

SHINTO AFTERLIFE BELIEFS

  • Emphasis is on kami, spiritual energies rather than reincarnation
  • Yomi, the land of the dead, is seen as the destination for all who die
  • It is neither a paradise nor hell and is frequently described as gloomy
9.

BUDDHIST AFTERLIFE BELIEFS

  • Strong Hindu influences
  • All people are part of cycle of samsara, rebirth
  • If enlightenment is achieved eventually the cycle is broken and Nirvana is reached
  • Different schools of Buddhism differ on afterlife related beliefs
10.

TIBETAN BOOK OF THE DEAD

  • Written by Padma Sambhava
  • Gives advice on matters concerning death and describes the afterlife
  • Beliefs of Tibetan Buddhists Vajrayana Buddhism
  • Tibetan Buddhists believe in six bardo states which detail what happens through life death and rebirth
11.

"O nobly-born... the body which you have now is called the thought-body of propensities. Since you do not have a material body of flesh and blood, whatever may come--sounds, lights, or rays--are, all three, unable to harm you; you are incapable of dying. It is quite sufficient for you to know that these apparitions are your own thought-forms. Recognize this to be the Bardo (the intermediate state after death)."-"The Tibetan Book of the Dead"

Photo by eriktorner
12.

BARDO STAGES

  • Kyenay Bardo: bardo from moment of life until death
  • Milam Bardo: bardo of dreams during life
  • Samten Bardo: bardo of meditation
  • Chikhai Bardo: bardo at the second of death, experience light
  • Chönyi Bardo: bardo of luminosity of true nature, manifesting thödgal (visions) of deities
  • Sidpa Bardo: bardo of transmigration, rebirth into new form
13.

DIFFERENT BUDDHIST AFTERLIFE VIEWS

  • Mahāyāna Buddhists believe the ideal afterlife state is a Bodhisattva
  • Boddhisattva have attained nirvana but choose rebirth out of compassion
  • Theravada Buddhists place less emphasis on literally rebirth and strive to achieve deathless Nirvana, oneness with Buddha
Photo by benchilada
14.

TRADITIONAL SHINTO FUNERALS

  • 20 step process
  • Purification is necessary before soul can reach Yomi
  • Among the 20 steps are instructions for how to wash the body and how to purify the earth before burial
  • A sword is placed on the coffin before cremation
  • Eventually most Shinto's are cremated so their ashes can be brought home to a shrine for rituals
15.

SHINTO AFTERLIFE PRACTICES

  • When a Shinto child is born their name is written in a list at a temple as a child and when they die the name is transferred to a list of kami (spirits)
  • Omarai is a process of ritual respect giving at Shinto shrines based on the belief that ancestors are able to impact the lives of the living
  • Before visiting the shrine people must purify themselves
16.

REI-SAI

  • Annual festival to honor ancestors and kami
  • Each shrine celebrates on a different day based on the deity the shrine is devoted to
  • Outside shrine effigy to kami are carried and occasion is joyful with music
  • Serious ceremony within shrine
17.

BUDDHIST FUNERAL

  • No standard ritual, many different
  • People wear white to express grief
  • Cremation is traditional as Buddha was cremated
  • Theravada Buddhists have more simple funerals usually
  • Vajrayana and Mahāyāna Buddhism often have 49 day morning period, until transmigration of soul
18.

OBON FESTIVAL

  • Japanese Buddhist (influenced by Confucianism) festival of the dead
  • Okurbi, ceremonial fire at beginning and end of celebration to guide ancestral spirits to final resting place
  • Obon dances are very common and popular, helping bring cheer during the holiday
19.

BLENDING OF THE TWO RELIGIONS

  • Today many people in Japan practice both Shintoism and Buddhism
  • Shinto shrines and Buddhist alters exist at many Japanese homes
  • 9/10 Shinto funerals are blended with aspects of Buddhism
20.

JIGOKU

  • Strong example of blending between Buddhism and Shintoism
  • Has been referred to as Japanese hell
  • Emma-O the Japanese lord of death is said to rule over it
  • He is the Japanese Buddhist god of the underworld
  • Judge of dead and delivered of punishments
  • Fabled like a boogeyman today
21.

CONCLUSION

  • Shintoism and Buddhism are both complex religions which intermingle at times
  • Shintoism is more focused on ancestral worship and rituals, overall it is less afterlife oriented
  • Buddhism has a deep focus and widely diverse ideas about afterlife with emphasis on reincarnation
Photo by twicepix
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PICTURE LINKS

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PICTURE LINKS

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Alyssa Ferreira