
audiobook
THE RELIGIONS OF JAPAN FROM THE DAWN OF HISTORY TO THE ERA OF MEIJI - BY - WILLIAM ELLIOT GRIFFIS, D.D. - FORMERLY OF THE IMPERIAL UNIVERSITY OF TOKIO; AUTHOR OF "THE MIKADO'S EMPIRE" AND "COREA, THE HERMIT NATION;" LATE LECTURER ON THE MORSE FOUNDATION IN UNION THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY IN NEW YORK - "I came not to destroy, but to fulfil."—THE SON OF MAN - NEW YORK - CHARLES SCRIBNER'S SONS - 1895 - COPYRIGHT, 1895, BY CHARLES SCRIBNER'S SONS - TROW DIRECTORY PRINTING AND BOOKBINDING COMPANY NEW YORK
PREFACE
PRIMITIVE FAITH: RELIGION BEFORE BOOKS
CHAPTER I - PRIMITIVE FAITH: RELIGION BEFORE BOOKS - The Morse Lectureship and the Study of Comparative Religion
SHINTŌ: MYTHS AND RITUAL
CHAPTER II - SHINTŌ: MYTHS AND RITUAL - The Japanese a Young Nation.
"THE KOJIKI" AND ITS TEACHINGS
CHAPTER III - "THE KOJIKI" AND ITS TEACHINGS - "The Kojiki" mid its Myths of Cosmogony.
THE CHINESE ETHICAL SYSTEM IN JAPAN
CHAPTER IV - THE CHINESE ETHICAL SYSTEM IN JAPAN - Confucius a Historical Character.
This volume offers a sweeping portrait of Japan’s religious landscape from its earliest myths to the dawn of the Meiji era. Drawing on the author’s own journeys across temples, shrines, and monastic quarters, it blends scholarly research with vivid, on‑the‑ground observations, allowing listeners to hear the rhythm of ancient rites and the whispers of folk belief that still echo through the countryside.
The narrative traces how Shintō, Buddhism, and local cults intertwined, shaping a culture where the sacred permeated daily life. As the country opened to foreign ideas, the book captures the tension between tradition and the new moral philosophies stirring among students and reformers. Listeners will be transported to a time when Japan’s spiritual world was both richly layered and on the brink of profound transformation, gaining insight into the forces that forged its modern identity.
Language
en
Duration
~12 hours (716K characters)
Publisher of text edition
Project Gutenberg
Credits
Produced by Nathan Strom, Frank van Drogen, David King, and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team
Release date
2005-03-31
Rights
Public domain in the USA.
Subjects

1843–1928
An American writer, educator, and former missionary, he helped introduce Japan, Korea, and Asia more broadly to English-speaking readers through lively books shaped by firsthand experience abroad. His work blended travel, history, biography, and popular interpretation for a wide general audience.
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by William Elliot Griffis