Page:Popular Science Monthly Volume 46.djvu/226

214 leaders of the Japanese renaissance of the eighteenth century, boldly asserts: "Human beings, having been produced by the spirit of the two creative deities, are naturally endowed with the knowledge of what they ought to do and what they ought to refrain from. It is unnecessary for them to trouble their heads with systems of morality. If a system of morals were necessary, men would be inferior to animals, all of whom are endowed with the knowledge of what they ought to do, only in an inferior degree to men." Hence he concludes that, as the Japanese have and need no system of morals, they are superior to the Chinese, who have and need such a system. Some eight hundred years earlier than Motoöri there flourished another great exponent of Shintō, whose name was Michizané. Michizané was a patriot, statesman, scholar, and poet, and even at present he is one of the most extensively worshiped gods of Shintō. This hero has a short poem which is expressive of the old religious spirit of the Japanese nation, and which, being helped by the influence of his strong and noble personality, has had a very marked influence among our countrymen. The poem, if I may venture to translate it, is this:

 Only if our inner heart is In harmony with the true way, The gods will protect us, Even though we do not pray."

The meaning of these lines is unmistakable. According to Michizané, religion can have no real existence apart from morality; but, on the contrary, if one live a pure and divine life, there is already in his life the reality of religion. If his heart is not in harmony with the heavenly way, and if he does not live his prayer in his life, mere verbal prayer is of no account, because the gods care more for the real purity of our heart than for the empty prayer of our mouth.

The other important characteristic of Shintō is that this system is a religion of naïve optimism. Our early forefathers seem to have been remarkably happy and cheerful in their temperament. "To live happy with gods and men" seems to have been the long and short of their religion as well as of their life. If any misfortune happened, they ascribed it to the anger and curse of the gods, and by offerings and festivals they tried to appease the gods and to restore their favor. If everything went well, and especially when the annual produce of the soil was plentiful, again they ascribed this to the favor and mercies of the gods, and by offerings and festivals they praised the gods and rejoiced themselves. Thus there are numerous festivals of the Shintō gods all over the country. These festivals may be classified as public and private, and also as regular and occasional. The