Shinto shrine

together by common practices and ethical codes. See appendix A “Evolution of Religions” There are eleven religions that will be the focus of our discussion, and they include: Native American, African, Hinduism, Jainism, Buddhism, Sikhism, Chinese, Shinto, Zoroastrianism, Judaism, Christianity and Islam. These religions date back to as early as 2500BCE and over time new religions have been created. Zoroastrianism being the older of the religions studied date back to 1500BCE, Jainism, Buddhism,…

Japanese vs Mexican Coming of Age Rituals The Japanese term for coming of age is Seijin no Hi. On this day, once a Japanese citizen turns 20 they are considered an adult. The Mexican coming of Age ceremony is a quinceanera. A quinceanera celebrates a 15 year olds matureness and transition to becoming a young adult. Even though both Japanese and Mexican cultures celebrate a coming of age ceremony for young adults, they each have many similarities and differences in their rituals. The Japanese…

The Tokugawa period was a cultural infusion of new forms of art. One form of art was practiced in the form of painting using a tedious process to get a spectrum of colors. Many woodblock paintings were like snapshots of everyday life. They weren't always drawn of wealthy aristocrats, rather a farmer's life. They were used to experience the unornamented, simple life. Some paintings are more urbanized and some are in rural areas. A common quality of many of the images is the presence of nature.…

The Kofun and haniwa served the purposes of the ancient Shinto religion, as well as the nobles who followed it, but disappeared as the Korean-imported Buddhism spread throughout the area. As the Kofun period came to an end, the religion of Buddhism officially entered Japan by way of neighboring Korea. Historians…

An island nation straddled along the Pacific coast of Asia, modern Japan is home to over 126 million people. Of those, 38 million live in Japan’s capital of Tokyo (Central Intelligence Agency, 2016). Japanese people share a distinctive culture. According to the U.S. Army Doctrine Reference Publication 5-0 (2012), culture is best described as, “shared beliefs, values, norms, customs, behaviors, and artifacts members of a society use to cope with the world and each other”. Japan’s culture…

During the fifteenth century, the Muromachi culture arose in Japan, which was influenced by Zen Buddhism. The shoguns supported Zen Buddhism where it was associated with the school of Buddhism that dealt with meditation and mind-to-mind transmission of truth. Zen continued to flourish and influence the Japanese culture. The idea of Zen focused on the simplicity side of things and that idea permeated through the arts such as Nō theatre. The Ashikaga shoguns were patrons of the Nō theatre. This…

For those who have never been to Asian countries, is invaluable to understand different areas of the world so they can work more effectively with other cultures. Japan is located in East Asia on the Pacific Sea. The currency in Japan is the Yen (JPY). It has four main islands, and a large number of active volcanoes that cause the country to have frequent earthquakes. Japan’s Prime Minister is working hard to not only preserve his nation’s landscape but also modernize his government. Foreign…

It is believed that Emperor Jimmu was the first emperor of Japan and resided in the capital city of Kyoto. However, the aristocracy fell marking the beginning of military rulers called the Shogun. Also, during this time the Shogun developed a caste system putting them at the very top. After a succession of the Shogun, the Azuchi-Momoyama period began with the establishment of the Tokugawa Shogunate, which also brought back the feudalist system (“Fact of Japan,” 2015). In 1867, the Tokugawa…

How would our world react if a meteorite was on a collision course with our planet and there was no chance of it missing us? The answer is simple: the world would return to its roots. The people of our planet would be returning to their homes, embracing their families, worshipping their religion, and praying that a greater power would help us. Proposing that the meteorite suddenly changed its course and missed our planet, how would our world join together through the fear of the event and…

I dreaded giving self introductions when I was little. Then, I had no clue what to introduce other than my name and age. As I mature, I began to perceive myself as a person and I started to understand how important my identity is to myself as well as the people I interact with. In a simple analogy, one’s identity can be seen as a Lego toy. When put together, Lego pieces can become a car, a movie character, or even a famous architecture. However, a Lego piece by itself has little meaning. It is…