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Department of Divinities

The Department of Divinities (神祇官, jingi-kan) was a government organization in Ancient Japan that was created during the ritsuryō reforms in the 8th century. It had several names, including the Department of Shinto Affairs, Department of Rites, Department of Worship, and Council of Divinities. It was established under the Taihō Code, which also created the Daijō-kan.[1][2] However, it was first mentioned in the Asuka Kiyomihara Code.[3]

Department of Divinities
SuccessorMinistry of Divinities, Great Teaching Institute, Missionary Office
Extinction1871

The Department of Divinities, also known as Jingi-kan, was a part of the Japanese Imperial bureaucracy established in the 8th century under the ritsuryō reforms. While Daijō-kan handled secular administrative affairs, Jingi-kan oversaw all matters related to Shintō, particularly of kami worship.[1][2] This included overseeing kami-related affairs at court and provincial shrines, coordinating the provinces' ritual practices with those in the capital, and performing rites for the gods based on a code called jingi-ryō.[3][1]

During the Meiji period, the department was briefly re-created and then dissolved. They made a new Ministry of Divinities (神祇省, jingi-shō) and Ministry of Religion (教部省, kyōbushō)..[3][4] Eventually it became the Institute of Divinities (神祇院, Jingi-in)

They wrote three major parts of Shinto Scripture: the Kojiki the Nihon Shoki and the Engishiki.

Structure

In the Department of Divinities there was this organization.[1]: Script error: The function "hyphen2dash" does not exist. .[1]: Script error: The function "hyphen2dash" does not exist. 

  • The Inbe family collected things to be used in rituals.[1]: Script error: The function "hyphen2dash" does not exist.  they also distributed offerings to Shrines across Japan.[1]: Script error: The function "hyphen2dash" does not exist.  They said they were descended from Ame no Futodama no Mikoto.[1]: Script error: The function "hyphen2dash" does not exist.  The Inbe clan thought official myths did not talk about them enough so they wrote the Kogo Shūi [en] to tell their story too.[1]
  • Sarume clan women were dancers and ritualists.[1]: Script error: The function "hyphen2dash" does not exist.  At first they served as seers and healers, but later they became important dancers. Their dances were called kagura, and they danced during Enthronement Rites and court ceremonies.[1]: Script error: The function "hyphen2dash" does not exist.  They said their ancestors were Ame no Uzume no Mikoto.[1]: Script error: The function "hyphen2dash" does not exist.  and Sarutahiko Ōkami.[5][6][7][8]
  • The Tamatsukuri (玉造) specialized in the creation of Magatama.[1]: Script error: The function "hyphen2dash" does not exist.  and are descended from Tamanooya-no-Mikoto [en]. [1]: Script error: The function "hyphen2dash" does not exist. 
  • The Kagamitsukuri (鏡造) were known for crafting bronze mirrors for use in shrine ceremonies.[1]: Script error: The function "hyphen2dash" does not exist.  and are descended from Ishikori-dome no Mikoto [en]. [1]: Script error: The function "hyphen2dash" does not exist. 
  • The Urabe clan (卜部氏) was a diviner clan. using tortoise shells and deer scapulae [1]: Script error: The function "hyphen2dash" does not exist. At first they were low rank in the Department, .[1]: Script error: The function "hyphen2dash" does not exist. [9] But later on they became important, and some took the name Yoshida (吉田). They said their ancestor was Ame-no-Koyane.[1]: Script error: The function "hyphen2dash" does not exist.  like the Nakatomi clan.[1]: Script error: The function "hyphen2dash" does not exist. 
  • Nakatomi clan: Later known as the Fujiwara [en], they specialized in reciting prayers to the Kami, with a divine lineage tracing back to Ame-no-Koyane no Mikoto.[1]: Script error: The function "hyphen2dash" does not exist.  The Ōnakatomi clan [ja] are the members of the clan that did not become Fujiwara.
    • In his book Jinja to kodai ōken saishi (1989). Iwao Ōwa [ja] says that the Ō clan [ja; en] (多氏, Ō no uji, also written as 大氏) was originally ōmi (大忌, "greater taboo (priesthood)"), but was usurped by the Nakatomi clan who were among the "lesser priesthood" (the latter claims descent from the Inbe clan (忌部氏)).[10]
    • Takemikazuchi was originally a local god (kunitsukami) revered by the Ō clan [ja; en] (多氏, Ō no uji, also written as 大氏),[10] and was a god of maritime travel.[10] However, the Nakatomi clan who also has roots in this region, and when they took over control of priestly duties from the Ō clan, they also instituted Takemikazuchi as the Nakatomi clan's ujigami (clan deity). Or so this is the observation by Iwao Ōwa [ja][10]

All of these clans are descended from figures who played significant roles in the Tenson kōrin [en] and descended from heaven with Ninigi, and many of them (Sarume clan, Inbe family, Nakatomi clan, and Urabe clan) descend from figures (Ame no Uzume, Futodama, Ame-no-Koyane, and Ame-no-Koyane respectively) played roles in the myth of Amaterasu in the cave.[1]: Script error: The function "hyphen2dash" does not exist. 

Two clans: the Mononobe clan [en] and Inbe clan thought the Kojiki myths did not talk about them enough. The Mononobe clan [en] wrote the Kujiki to add their ancestor Nigihayahi. [1] The Inbe clan wrote the Kogo Shūi [en] to tell their story too.[1]

In 1161 the Shirakawa family [ja] took over the Department. They were a Kazan Genji clan. They rebuilt the Hasshinden in 1281. The Hasshinden was an ancient hall dedicated to the eight deities charged with protecting the imperial family, reinforcing its role in state rituals and the safeguarding of the imperial household. However, during the Onin War (1467–1477), the Shirakawa Hasshinden was destroyed amid the widespread turmoil and devastation that affected Kyoto.[1]: Script error: The function "hyphen2dash" does not exist. 

Later the Urabe clan made a Hasshinden at Yoshida Shrine

Related pages

References

  1. ↑ 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 1.11 1.12 1.13 1.14 1.15 1.16 1.17 1.18 1.19 1.20 1.21 1.22 1.23 1.24 Hardacre, Helen (2017). Shinto: A History. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-062171-1.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Pye, Michael (1994). Macmillan Dictionary of Religion. doi:10.1057/9780230379411. ISBN 978-1-349-38861-5.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 "§Shamei Bunpu (Shrine Names and Distributions)". Encyclopedia of Shinto. Archived from the original on 2021-10-21. Retrieved 2022-12-03.
  4. ↑ Shinto: A History. Oxford, New York: Oxford University Press. 2016-12-01. ISBN 978-0-19-062171-1.
  5. ↑ Picken, Stuart D. B. (2004). Sourcebook in Shinto: Selected Documents. Greenwood Publishing Group. ISBN 978-0-313-26432-0.
  6. ↑ Roberts, Jeremy (2009). Japanese Mythology A to Z. Infobase Publishing. ISBN 978-1-4381-2802-3.
  7. ↑ Coulter, Charles Russell; Turner, Patricia (2013-07-04). Encyclopedia of Ancient Deities. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-135-96397-2.
  8. ↑ "Amenouzume". Encyclopedia of Shinto. Retrieved 2024-03-18.
  9. ↑ "Jingidōke". Encyclopedia of Shinto. Retrieved 2024-03-19.
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 10.3 小向, 正司 (1992). 神道の本. Books Esoterica. Vol. 2. 学研. pp. 76–7.(zasshi code 66951-07; kyōtsu zasshi code T10-66951-07-1000)

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