Topic

My research question is "Why is Japan's religious structure so unique?" I knew I wanted to do something religion based, because it's always been something that's fascinated me, but this is sort of where my sources took me. I started out with Eastern Religions, and then I went towards the Japanese religion of Shinto and how Chinese religions affected it, but it didn't feel right. The issue was, Japanese religion is weird. Only 2% of Japanese folk are devout followers of one religion. Most people mix together a bunch of different religions.
I think that this is because the Japanese feel like they shouldn't have to suffer because of their religion. For example, the indigenous religion of Japan is Shinto. In Shinto, when you die, there are no death rites. In fact, when you die, you are considered "impure" and must be disposed of so that you stop polluting the harmony of this world. In Buddhism, death is celebrated as a passing into a world without suffering. But Buddhism thinks that life is suffering, so they have no birth rites. Shinto, however, believes that bringing people into this world is a joyful addition to the harmony of the planet. Thus, most Japanese do Shinto birth rites and Buddhist death rites. On top of all this, neither of those religions have big wedding ceremonies, unlike, say, Christianity, so many Japanese will have Christian weddings. They also celebrate Xmas, and it is considered one of the most romantic days of the year. The government claims to be Shinto, but there are too many references to Confucian principles to count.