Comparison between Shinto and Taoism
Introduction
Shinto and Taoism share several commonalities, which are extrinsic and differences as well. Both of them are religious and indigenous from the roots of shamanism from Buddhism in their respective countries, which are China and Japan. Their names originated from people outside religion. According to naming, both of them contain chines characters. Challenges to the comparison are that it is difficult to define the comparative things due to Chinese characters.
Similarities
Shinto and Taoism are similar in that both of them started as religions that were indigenous in china. The world views them as religions, but they are complicated than other religions because both of them share the same Chines characters (Zhaoguang page130).
Both religions originated from Buddhism, and the world views them as an emphasis on living with peace and harmony because that is the main point of both Shinto and Taoism. They suggest that human beings should live with harmony among each other (Hang 245). Another common similarity is that both of them continent of origin were Asia despite being practiced from different countries, Shinto in China and Taoism in Japan.
Taoism and Shinto both believed in the application of superstitious and crude magic in the form of talismans and amulets. They believe that these tools can be used to bring good luck and, at the same time, drive away evil spirits and bad luck (Hang page 276). They wore the talismans and amulets on the neck and sometimes around the waist, each tool with significant meaning.
Both Shinto and Taoism shared the same ritualistic practices ( Zhaoguang, page168). For instance, Shinto had ground purification in China, where it was known as a temporary shrine. The main aim of purification was that they wanted to appease Kami, who was the god of the land, and also to please local spirits to protect their future. On the other hand, Taoism also practiced a similar practice of ground purification in Japan. They wanted to please their gods known as Toko-shizume-no-matsuri and Ji-matsuri, the grond purification place was also the dwelling place for the holly.
Differences
The difference between Shinto and Taoism is that Shinto, as a religion, believes that there is no life after death. According to Shinto, the body of the dead returns to the universe as another form of energy after decomposition (Hang page 253). According to Taoism, if a person died and was a wrongdoer, the spirit of that person will go to hell, where they believed that hell is under the Tai Mountain, which is sacred located in China. Therefore, Taoism believed in the afterlife, while Shinto did not believe in the afterlife.
Another difference is that believers had different praying holy sites. Shinto’s place was worship was known as jinja. Taoism’s place of worship was known as tera. They also had architectural and aesthetics differences between two of them. The shrine of Shinto had a wide gate known as the tori, which was used as the entrance and decorated with vermillion. Taoism, on the other hand, had a smaller entrance filled with statues made from gold (Boot, page 418).
Another difference is that they recognized different holidays. Shinto believers celebrated the Tenjin Matsuri, Kanda Matsuri, and the Gion Matsuri festivals while the Taoism people celebrated the Obon festivals. The holidays take place once every year ( Zhaoguang, page 138).
Conclusion
In conclusion, Daoism and Shinto appear at first sight to be hard in defining the terms. None of these religious definitions is as easy as defining Christianity. Both of them are, however, traditions with the same perspective, which is spiritual and aims in making people live in peace and harmony. They share several things in common, like they believed that both female and male functions are the sources of the universe. However, there are several differences like their holidays, praying sites, and the afterlife. All these are important in the current learning setup.
References
Zhaoguang, G. E. “Between Nation and History: Starting from the Japanese: Debates on the Relationship between Chinese Daoism, Japanese Shintō and the Tennō System.” Here in’China’I Dwell. Brill, 2017. 127-149.
Boot, W. J. “Karl. F. Friday (ed.): Routledge Handbook of Premodern Japanese History.(Routledge Handbooks.) xiii, 418 pp. Abingdon and New York: Routledge, 2017. ISBN 978 0 415 70702 2.” Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies 81.3 (2018): 569-570.
Hang, Lin. “Ge Zhaoguang, Here in “China” I Dwell: Reconstructing Historical Discourse of China for Our Time. Translated by Jesse Field and Qin Fang. Brill’s Humanities in China Library, 10. Leiden–Boston: Brill, 2017. xiv, 217 pp. Index. US $127,€ 110 (HB). ISBN 978-9-004-27997-1.” (2018): 242-245.