Kiyome (Purification Culture)

A Shinto ceremony in which a priest uses an oonusa (purification wand) and norito (prayers) to cleanse sins and impurities. Performed at life milestones such as purchasing a new car, building a new home, or starting a business, as well as through regular purification events like the year-end Oharae and the June Nagoshi no Harae.

A ritual cleansing of hands and mouth at the temizuya basin before shrine and temple visits. The prescribed order of cleaning right hand, left hand, mouth, and ladle handle is an important act of preparing one's mindset for worship. While many shrines switched to flowing water systems after COVID-19, the spirit of purification continues unchanged.

A rope of twisted straw hung at shrines and sacred places, demarcating sacred from mundane space. Also used as New Year decoration, symbolizing household purification and good fortune. A fundamental Shinto symbol expressing cleansing and protection concepts. It materially represents Japanese religious practice and nature consciousness.

A Shinto purification ritual of immersing oneself in cold water from waterfalls, rivers, or the sea to cleanse body and mind. Practiced since ancient times as a discipline to wash away sins and impurities and achieve spiritual rebirth, it can still be experienced at certain shrines and training centers. Interest is growing as a method of spiritual renewal.

A Shinto ceremony in which a priest uses an oonusa (purification wand) and norito (prayers) to cleanse sins and impurities. Performed at life milestones such as purchasing a new car, building a new home, or starting a business, as well as through regular purification events like the year-end Oharae and the June Nagoshi no Harae.

Objects in which divine spirits reside. Massive rocks wrapped with shimenawa ropes, sacred trees, mirrors, and swords serve as vessels indicating where gods dwell. Shrine sacred objects are also forms of yorishiro, representing Japan's religious imagination that makes invisible gods visible and tangible. This concept frequently appears as a motif in anime and manga.

A ritual cleansing of hands and mouth at the temizuya basin before shrine and temple visits. The prescribed order of cleaning right hand, left hand, mouth, and ladle handle is an important act of preparing one's mindset for worship. While many shrines switched to flowing water systems after COVID-19, the spirit of purification continues unchanged.

Supernatural spiritual entities in Shintoism. Not limited to deities enshrined in shrines but extending to natural phenomena (mountains, rivers, trees), ancestors, and even exceptional humans. Rather than monotheistic absolute beings, they represent polytheistic, approachable spiritual presences. Reflects reverence for animistic spirituality and forms the foundation of Japanese nature views and religious worldview. Deeply integrated into daily Japanese religious practice through shrine visits and annual observances.