Shinto

===Etymology===
[[File:Takachiho-gawara Kirishima City Kagoshima Pref02n4050.jpg|thumb|A torii gate at the [[Takachiho-gawara]] shrine near [[Kirishima, Kagoshima|Kirishima]], [[Kagoshima Prefecture]], which is associated with the mythological tale of [[Ninigi-no-Mikoto]]'s [[tenson kōrin|descent to earth]].]]
The term ''Shinto'' is often translated into English as "the way of the {{lang|ja-Latn|kami}}",{{sfnm|1a1=Offner|1y=1979|1p=193|2a1=Kitagawa|2y=1987|2p=139|3a1=Bocking|3y=1997|3p=173|4a1=Nelson|4y=2000|4p=14|5a1=Earhart|5y=2004|5p=2|6a1=Picken|6y=2011|6p=9}} although its meaning has varied throughout Japanese history.{{sfnm|1a1=Kuroda|1y=1981|1p=4|2a1=Bocking|2y=1997|2pp=viii, 173}} Other terms are sometimes used synonymously with "Shinto"; these include ''{{lang|ja-Latn|kami no michi}}'' ({{lang|ja|神の道}}, "the way of the {{lang|ja-Latn|kami}}"), ''{{lang|ja-Latn|kannagara no michi}}'' ({{lang|ja|神ながらの道}}, also written {{lang|ja|随神の道}} or {{lang|ja|惟神の道}}, "the way of the {{lang|ja-Latn|kami}} from time immemorial"), ''{{lang|ja-Latn|Kodō}}'' ({{lang|ja|古道}}, "the ancient way"), ''{{lang|ja-Latn|Daidō}}'' ({{lang|ja|大道}}, "the great way"), and ''{{lang|ja-Latn|Teidō}}'' ({{lang|ja|帝道}}, "the imperial way").{{sfnm|1a1=Picken|1y=1994|1p=xxiv|2a1=Picken|2y=2011|2p=64}}

The term ''Shinto'' derives from the combination of two Chinese characters: ''[[Shen (Chinese religion)|shen]]'' ({{script|Hani|神}}), which means "spirit", and ''[[dao]]'' ({{script|Hani|道}}), which means "way", "road" or "path".{{sfnm|1a1=Kitagawa|1y=1987|1p=139|2a1=Littleton|2y=2002|2p=6|3a1=Picken|3y=2011|3p=9}} "Shendao" ({{lang-zh|t=神道|p=shéndào|l=the Way of the Gods}}) was a term already used in the ''[[Yijing]]'' referring to the divine order of nature.<ref>''Commentary on Judgment'' about ''Yijing'' 20, ''Guan'' ("Viewing"): "Viewing the Way of the Gods (''Shendao''), one finds that the four seasons never deviate, and so the sage establishes his teachings on the basis of this Way, and all under Heaven submit to him".</ref> Around the time of the spread of [[Buddhism]] in the [[Han dynasty]] (206 BCE – 220 CE), it was used to distinguish [[Chinese folk religion|indigenous Chinese religions]] from the imported religion. [[Ge Hong]] used it in his ''[[Baopuzi]]'' as a synonym for [[Taoism]].<ref>Herman Ooms. ''Imperial Politics and Symbolics in Ancient Japan: The Tenmu Dynasty, 650–800''. University of Hawaii Press, 2009. {{ISBN|0824832353}}. p. 166</ref>

The [[Chinese language|Chinese]] term ''Shendao'' was originally adopted into Japanese as ''Jindō'';{{sfn|Teeuwen|2002|p=243}} this was possibly first used as a Buddhist term to refer to non-Buddhist deities.{{sfn|Teeuwen|2002|p=256}} Among the earliest known appearances of the term ''Shinto'' in Japan is in the 8th-century text, {{Lang|ja-latn|[[Nihon Shoki]]}}.{{sfnm|1a1=Teeuwen|1y=2002|1p=236|2a1=Hardacre|2y=2017|2p=41}} Here, it may be a generic term for popular belief,{{sfnm|1a1=Kuroda|1y=1981|1pp=4–5|2a1=Teeuwen|2y=2002|2p=237}} or alternatively reference Taoism, as many Taoist practices had recently been imported from mainland Asia.{{sfnm|1a1=Kuroda|1y=1981|1p=6|2a1=Teeuwen|2y=2002|2p=237|3a1=Hardacre|3y=2017|3p=42}} In these early Japanese uses, the word ''Shinto'' did not apply to a distinct religious tradition nor to anything uniquely Japanese;{{sfn|Kuroda|1981|p=7}} the 11th century ''[[Konjaku Monogatarishū|Konjaku monogatarishui]]'' for instance refers to a woman in China practicing ''Shinto'', and also to people in India worshipping {{lang|ja-Latn|kami}}, indicating these terms were being used to describe religions outside Japan itself.{{sfn|Kuroda|1981|pp=9–10}}

In medieval Japan, {{lang|ja-Latn|kami}}-worship was generally seen as being part of [[Japanese Buddhism]], with the {{lang|ja-Latn|kami}} themselves often interpreted as [[Buddhas]].{{sfn|Kuroda|1981|pp=11, 12}} At this point, the term ''Shinto'' increasingly referred to "the authority, power, or activity of a {{lang|ja-Latn|kami}}, being a {{lang|ja-Latn|kami}}, or, in short, the state or attributes of a {{lang|ja-Latn|kami}}."{{sfn|Kuroda|1981|p=10}} It appears in this form in texts such as ''{{lang|ja-Latn|Nakatomi no harai kunge}}'' and ''[[Shintōshū]]'' tales.{{sfn|Kuroda|1981|p=10}} In the ''[[Nippo Jisho|Japanese Portuguese Dictionary]]'' of 1603, ''Shinto'' is defined as referring to "{{lang|ja-Latn|kami}} or matters pertaining to {{lang|ja-Latn|kami}}."{{sfn|Kuroda|1981|pp=10–11}} The term ''Shinto'' became common in the 15th century.{{sfn|Hardacre|2017|p=42}} During the late Edo period, the {{lang|ja-Latn|[[kokugaku]]}} scholars began using the term ''Shinto'' to describe what they believed was an ancient, enduring and indigenous Japanese tradition that predated Buddhism; they argued that ''Shinto'' should be used to distinguish {{lang|ja-Latn|kami}} worship from traditions like Buddhism, Taoism, and Confucianism.{{sfnm|1a1=Kuroda|1y=1981|1p=19|2a1=Bocking|2y=1997|2p=174}} This use of the term ''Shinto'' became increasingly popular from the 18th century.{{sfn|Bocking|1997|p=174}} The term ''Shinto'' has been commonly used only since the early 20th century, when it superseded the term {{lang|ja-Latn|[[taikyō]]}} ('great religion') as the name for the Japanese state religion.{{sfn|Bocking|1997|p=viii}}