Shinto and Japanese Religions

Shinto Scripture

The Kojiki
Basil Hall Chamberlain, tr. [1919]
An abridged version of the Chamberlain translation.

The Yengishiki or Shinto Rituals
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Kogoshui: Gleanings from Ancient Stories
translated by Genchi Katō and Hikoshirō Hoshino [1926].

Japanese Spirituality and Folklore

LAFCADIO HEARN
In Ghostly Japan
by Lafcadio Hearn [1899].
Gleanings In Buddha-Fields
by Lafcadio Hearn [1897].
Kwaidan
by Lafcadio Hearn [1904].
Japan, An Attempt At Interpretation
by Lafcadio Hearn [1904]
One of Hearn's last books, this substantial volume is a highly readable history of Shinto in Japan, and its interaction with Buddhism and Christianity; highly recommended for outsiders who want to understand the Japanese sprit and culture.

KAKUZO OKAKURA
The Book of Tea
by Kakuzo Okakura [1906]
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This book discusses the aesthetics of the Japanese Tea Ceremony, and its connection to the Japanese world-view as a whole.
The Ideals of the East
by Kakuzo Okakura [1904]
Learn about the evolution of Japanese art and its relationship to Buddhism.

The Shundai Zatsuwa (A Japanese Philosopher)
By Kyuso (Muro Naokiyo) [1892]
This text is an account of Japanese Neo-Confucian thought.

Bushido, The Soul of Japan
by Inazo Nitobe [1905].
This short and very readable book describes the code of honor of the Samurai and Japanese feudalism, which is essential to understanding many aspects of Japanese society and history.

Ancient Tales and Folk-lore of Japan
by Richard Gordon Smith [1918]
An anthology of Japanese 'Magical Realist' legends and folklore.

The Nō Plays of Japan
by Arthur Waley [1921].
Translations of a selection of Nō dramas, which have deep connections with Japanese Buddhism, Shinto, and Japanese folklore.

Japanese Fairy Tales
Second Series. By Teresa Peirce Williston, Illustrated by Sanchi Ogawa [1911]

The Story of Gio
from the Heike Monogatari, retold by Ridgely Torrence [1935, Copyright not renewed]

A Hundred Verses from Old Japan
(the Hyakunin-isshu), translated by William N. Porter [1909]
A wonderful thousand-year-old collection of Tanka poetry.

Japanese Haiku
translated by Peter Beilenson [1955]
A collection of 220 Japanese Haiku.

Ainu

Ainu Texts This is a page which links all of the Ainu resources at sacred-texts.