Shinto: Origins, Rituals, Festivals, Spirits, Sacred Places

Shinto provides a succinct, authoritative and accessible introduction to one of the great religious traditions. The book is organized around nine key themes: Origins and Historical Development, Aspects of the Divine, Sacred Texts, Sacred Persons, Ethical Principles, Sacred Space, Sacred Time, Death and the Afterlife, and Society and Religion. Each of these themes is supplemented by extracts from or summaries of historical texts, with a concise commentary that explains its significance or places it in context. (From back cover.)