the antiquities of the Japanese are to be men tioned the magatamas and the curiously-shaped pots (pl. 64, figs. 16, zo, 22) in which they are usually found. The magatamas are crooked, egg shaped, or disk-like stones (a. 64, figs. 1o, II), which are held in high repute as amulets; and among the Ainos the chiefs still wear them in chains which are esteemed of great value. Plate 65 (fig. 3) shows one of these chains. The crooked solitary stones are the magatamas, the others are obsidian pearls.
Sinto creed, which was the religion of the ancient Jap anese, much resembles the present belief of the Aims In the beginning there were seven gods, who rose from chaos; of whom the last one, Isanagi, fished the islands of Japan out of the water with his spear. At the same time the second race of gods, or the five deities of earth, whose name means "the beam-casting god," were born of him and of his wife Isan emi. By these are unquestionably meant the heavenly bodies, particu larly the sun, whose son, Tsin-mu, was the first father of the mikado an.l the daimios, wherefore the mikado is honored as his representative and as a god.
There are multitudes of kami—i. c. gods and genii—dependent upon the sun and guardian spirits of individuals and cities. Human souls are dependent upon them, and either continue to live in the heavenly fields of happiness after a righteous life, or arc punished by being compelled to wander about on earthly or subterranean paths. The dead are buried with numerous ceremonies connected with the worship of souls. For merly little buildings like temples (dwelling-places for souls) were built over the graves as monuments; now in the cities we find garden-like cemeteries. Foxes are held to be evil spirits, and the souls of bad men are believed to transmigrate into the bodies of these animals; neverthe less, fox-hair brushes are often used.
The teachings of this religion are worthy of notice. It inculcates purity of heart, which consists in strict obedience to the laws of religion and in a temperate and reasonable life and purity of outer life, which excludes the use of blood or meat and forbids touching a dead body. Whoever does the latter (c. g. executioners and tanners) is unclean, and must live apart from other men for a longer or shorter time. Therefore, all those who have buried a relation are unclean for a time proportionate to their nearness of kin to the (lead—a custom also in vogue among the Ainos. Washing with water removes this uncleanness. These usages
correspond with the Polynesian taboo (pp. 194, zoo), and many other things in the Japanese religion remind us of the Polynesians.
In the beginning the law of uncleanness was applied materially, and as a consequence it reduced the diet of the Japanese to narrow limits; later, it received a more spiritual interpretation. 'rite form of unclean ness most dreaded at present is that front wicked speaking as well as front the improper use of ears and eyes.
Temfilcs. —The Sinto religion has temples, which rest upon small piles and have open windows and galleries (p1. 63, Jig. 5). In the interior the sun is represented by a mirror, before which prayers arc offered. The temples are entered through a kind of wooden door resembling those which the Ainos erect on graves; the Aino graves also are built in the form of these temples 66, Jig. 3). Pilgrimages are made annually to specially holy places. The poorer pilgrims (/51. 63, 2) wear over the usual dress a loose light-colored jacket with a pocket in which they col lect alms. There are no priests, the temples being kept by laymen, but there are numerous feast-days—e.g. the first day of each of their twelve or thirteen months—and five principal feasts, among which that of the new year is the greatest. They have also monkish orders, whose mem bers resemble the fakirs.
B Jae/ is now more widespread than the Sinto relig ion. It made its way from Corea about 543 A. D., and is now much min gled with the Sinto creed. For example, the temple on Plate 65 (fig. 2) is holy both to Buddha and to the " five hundred genii " of the Japanese religion. These are children of the goddess of riches, and are worshipped on special feasts. The maniPold objects displayed in the temple serve both to adorn it and to interest the faithful. Buddhism has become divided into various sects, and through intermixture with the Sinto creed is less sensual than in its original home, but otherwise has remained unchanged. Plate 63 (fig. so) shows a Buddhist priest. The third creed, which has but few followers, and those only among the learned, is Confucianism, much modified by the Sinto.