Adherent counts are not meaningful for Shinto — practice is widespread and non-exclusive, and survey figures vary by an order of magnitude depending on the question asked. The page states this rather than giving a number.
Overview
In the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, the study of native learning came to refer more narrowly to the effort to discern a native Way distinct from Buddhism and Confucianism within Japan’s most ancient writings, and to the attendant effort to resurrect that Way in the present.1
History and origins
Alongside the more traditional studies of China, there arose new historical studies of things Japanese: history, literature, philology, poetics, customs, mythology and the tradition of kami worship.2 One strand of that scholarship represented the ancient pre-Buddhist and pre-Confucian past as the “land of the kami”, characterised by a simple self-sufficiency rooted in the native Way.3
The kami
One interpretation held that the Japanese people were descended from, and as varied as, the innumerable kami — some good and some bad, but unmistakably blessed when taken as a whole.4 By tradition the waka poems were thought to be an invention of the kami, rendering them ultimately beyond human ken.5
References
- “it came to refer more narrowly to the effort to discern a native Way distinct from Buddhism and Confucianism within Japan’s most ancient writings, and to the attendant effort to resurrect that Way in the present” — Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy: Kokugaku School, source page↗ (opens in a new tab)
- “there arose new historical studies of things Japanese—history, literature, philology, poetics, customs, mythology, the tradition of kami worship and so on” — Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy: Kokugaku School, source page↗ (opens in a new tab)
- “the ancient pre-Buddhist and pre-Confucian past as the “land of the kami ” ( shinkoku ) characterized by a simple self-sufficiency rooted in the native Way” — Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy: Kokugaku School, source page↗ (opens in a new tab)
- “the Japanese people were descended from and as varied as the innumerable kami , some good and some bad, but unmistakably blessed when taken as a whole” — Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy: Kokugaku School, source page↗ (opens in a new tab)
- “By tradition waka were thought to be an invention of the kami rendering them ultimately beyond human ken” — Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy: Kokugaku School, source page↗ (opens in a new tab)
Individual sourced statements
Statements recorded one at a time, each shown with the words it rests on. They sit alongside the account above rather than beneath it.
Shin Mei Spiritual Centre states that Shinto teaches that humans are innately bright and pure, and are descendants of the kami.
“Shinto teaches us that humans are innately bright and pure; we are descendants of the kami-the spiritual beings of the universe.”
Every quotation above was checked against its source on 5 September 2026.
13 further statements are withheld because the supporting quotation could not be confirmed on the source’s last check.
Authority
Shinto has no central authority.
The Association of Shinto Shrines represents most shrines in Japan but does not govern the tradition, and many practitioners do not identify Shinto as a religion in the exclusive sense.
How these dates are worked out
This is the part that decides whether a date in your rota is right. Every observance below is computed from a published rule rather than copied from anyone’s list, and the rule is what explains why a date moves, why two calendars can disagree, and how far ahead you can safely plan.
Fixed in the Gregorian calendar
- What sets the date
- The date is the same every year in the calendar most of the world uses for civil purposes.
- Why it falls where it does
- Nothing about it depends on the moon, the sun's position or an announcement, so it cannot move.
- What that means for planning
- These are the only dates that can be put in a rota years ahead without any caveat. The day of the week changes; the date does not.
The day before the start of spring
- What sets the date
- The date is the day before risshun, the solar term marking the beginning of spring, which is when the sun reaches a specific ecliptic longitude.
- Why it falls where it does
- Because it is a solar term rather than a fixed date, it drifts by a day across the leap-year cycle rather than being permanently anchored.
- What that means for planning
- In practice it is 3 February in most years and 2 February in some.
Observances in 2026
Sources
No expert review. Accuracy here rests on continuous machine verification of every quotation against its source. Spotted an error? Corrections are answered within five working days.