Japanese are religious.

Are there Japanese who introduce themselves saying "I'm a irreligionist" even now? They still believe they view their own from a scientific standpoint？ Japanese people who realized what Japanese is don't say such a sleep talking. They will say, for example, "I'm a buddhist and Shinto but I'm not devoted adherent.". Those who realized it perceive that Japanese have deep religious feelings.



Usually, We try to keep "death" at a distance. We tend to avoid graveyards and avoid to bring dead bodies into our sight. Because Japanese feel Kegare when we see "death". Kegare is a kind of contamination of soul. This feeling of Japanese is very religious feelings.



In addition, We can say the reason of commercial success of "Ring" and "Jyuon" is the feelings we have. We all feel existence of "akuryo(evil spirits)" . That's why the movie became a big hit. If we don't feel them, then we might jeeringly laugh at such Japanese horror movies. It is a very religious feeling that Akuryo may possess us and may take our life.



Hatumoude(new year's visit to a shrine) is a also common instance attests to our religious feeling. We pray to be blessed. Japanese ask Gods to exorcise Kegare from us at shrines. We are refreshed in Hatumoude. We can't feel this refreshing without religious feeling.



We have those feeling even now. In addition, if someone doesn't have this spirituality, he is not Japanese. Even though you change nationality thorough an office procedure and become a member of Japanese state, you can't become a Japanese belonging in Japanese nation. (According to Oxford dictionary, Nation means a country considered as a group of people with the same language, culture and history, who live in a particular area under one government. state means a country considered as an organized political community controlled by one government. So I can say nation is inartificial and state is artificial. ) When it comes to Japanese Christians, we can say they are exceptional instance which prove that this nation has been relating with other nations.



I say again we are religious. In Japan, once even many　academic scientists believed religion is contrary to science. However that proved religions are closely bound up in human is rather scientists studying social science, philosophy and etc. If we scientifically express what we are, we have to say "I'm a buddhist and Shinto but I'm not devoted adherent."



This essay is a little difficult to write in English, I may recompose this.



The photo is Higanbana(cluster-amaryllis) in Nerima ward, Tokyo.