神道教(Shinto)

日本本土宗教，以对kami神的信仰为基础。采用神道教这一术语是为了把日本人的本土信仰与对在6世纪传入的佛教的信仰区别开来。该教没有创建者，也没有正式经籍，只是将其神话收集在《古事记》和《日本书纪》两本写於8世纪的书中。核心内容是对神秘创造力和对神的信仰。据说在最初的一批神道教者出现後，伊奘诺尊和伊奘冉尊二神孕育出日本各岛和神，他後来成为各氏族的祖先。日本皇室自称是伊奘冉尊之女，即天照大神的後代。据说所有的神道教者相互合作，身心和谐。人们相信他们能产生得到保护、合作和支持的神秘力量。从对神社仪式的尊重和观察（比如仪式的纯洁性）来看，神道教的实践者已开始理解神的意愿，并与其和睦相处。亦请参阅Shinbutsu shugo。

English version：

Shinto

Indigenous religion of Japan, based on the worship of spirits known as kami. The term Shinto (“way of the kami”) came into use to distinguish indigenous Japanese beliefs from Buddhism, which had been introduced into Japan in the 6th century AD. Shinto has no founder and no official scripture, though its mythology is collected in the Kojiki (“Records of Ancient Matters”) and Nihon shoki (“Chronicles of Japan”), written in the 8th century. At its core are beliefs in the mysterious creating and harmonizing power of kami. According to Shinto myths, in the beginning a certain number of kami simply emerged, and a pair of kami, Izanagi and Izanami, gave birth to the Japanese islands, as well as to the kami who became ancestors of the various clans. The Japanese imperial family claims descent from Izanagi's daughter, the sun goddess Amaterasu. All kami are said to cooperate with one another, and life lived in accordance with their will is believed to produce a mystical power that gains their protection, cooperation, and approval. Through veneration and observation of prescribed rituals at shrines (e.g., ritual purity), practitioners of Shinto can come to understand and live in accordance with divine will. See also Shinbutsu shugo.