Spiderman
Veteran Member
There are major controversies surrounding Yasukuni Shrine, a Japanese Shinto shrine to war dead who served the Emperor of Japan during wars from 1867–1951. This eligibility includes civilians in service and government officials. Yasukuni is a shrine to house the actual souls of the dead as kami, or "spirits/souls" as loosely defined in the English words. This activity is strictly a religious matter due to the religious separation of State Shinto and the Japanese Government. The priesthood at the shrine has complete religious autonomy to decide to whom and how enshrinement may occur. It is thought that enshrinement is permanent and irreversible by the current clergy. Due to the enshrinement of individuals found to be war criminals by the International Military Tribunal for the Far East and an approach to the war museum considered by some to be nationalist, China, South Korea and North Korea have called the Yasukuni Shrine a microcosm of a revisionist and unapologetic approach to Japanese crimes of World War II
Of the 2,466,532 people contained in the shrine's Book of Souls, 1,068 were convicted of war crimes by a post-World War II court.
Controversies surrounding Yasukuni Shrine - Wikipedia
I'm just mystified by this. An actual home for the souls of war criminals who raped and murdered innocent people and ran death camps, venerated like Saints and adored by a shinto priesthood?...a place where Japanese politicians and prime ministers visit to pay homage to the spirits of some of the people who are responsible for some of the most gruesome atrocities and tortures I've ever heard of?? Wicked!
Veneration of dead soldiers...something I already have been doing...hmmm...I totally think this shinto stuff is right up my alley...
I pray to dead historical figures and venerate all sorts of dead people. I have their pictures all over my room.
I burn candles and incense to them, buy them flowers, write them letters, sing them songs, I've gone out in the woods and made little stone altars for them (a pile of stones, framed pictures, flowers, candles, incense etc.)
Till of course, the police found my shrine, and wondered if I was the guy that killed them.
Anyway, my spirituality is actually quite creepy. I like to honor victims of rape, torture, murder, slavery, and humiliation, often whose remains had no proper burial. (Is that creepy?)
Since they were treated so badly and disrespected in this life, I like to honor them and treat them like monarchs in the next life, and feel like it brings about their glorification, exaltation, perfection, and gives them treasures!
It's thoroughly satiating bonding with the spirits of the dead.
This relates to Yasukuni shrine, because the spirituality they practice is so similar to what I've already been doing, and it's great to find such a bizzare unusual spirituality is practiced and embraced elsewhere, on a fairly large scale, even by government officials.
This Japanese Shinto house of the dead sounds like a place I want to spend the rest of my life!
Just thought I would share that with you. I'm off to study the traditions of the Yasukuni clergy, and how they go about contacting those brave men who died for Emperor Hirohito!
I'm off to pray to the Japanese emperors! Hirohito, I'm with you, your faithful POW!
Could you imagine if there was a shrine in Germany that housed the souls of Adolf Hitler and the soldiers of the Third Reich??
And Angela Merkel, and German politicians went there to adore, venerate, invoke, and pay homage to their spirits??Lol! American Media would be all over that!!!
But I've never seen American media say anything about this controversial shrine in Japan, a home and priesthood for the spirits of war criminals responsible for some of the worst atrocities I've ever heard of.
What do you think is the reason for this double standard?
Of the 2,466,532 people contained in the shrine's Book of Souls, 1,068 were convicted of war crimes by a post-World War II court.
Controversies surrounding Yasukuni Shrine - Wikipedia
I'm just mystified by this. An actual home for the souls of war criminals who raped and murdered innocent people and ran death camps, venerated like Saints and adored by a shinto priesthood?...a place where Japanese politicians and prime ministers visit to pay homage to the spirits of some of the people who are responsible for some of the most gruesome atrocities and tortures I've ever heard of?? Wicked!
Veneration of dead soldiers...something I already have been doing...hmmm...I totally think this shinto stuff is right up my alley...
I pray to dead historical figures and venerate all sorts of dead people. I have their pictures all over my room.
I burn candles and incense to them, buy them flowers, write them letters, sing them songs, I've gone out in the woods and made little stone altars for them (a pile of stones, framed pictures, flowers, candles, incense etc.)
Till of course, the police found my shrine, and wondered if I was the guy that killed them.
Anyway, my spirituality is actually quite creepy. I like to honor victims of rape, torture, murder, slavery, and humiliation, often whose remains had no proper burial. (Is that creepy?)
Since they were treated so badly and disrespected in this life, I like to honor them and treat them like monarchs in the next life, and feel like it brings about their glorification, exaltation, perfection, and gives them treasures!
It's thoroughly satiating bonding with the spirits of the dead.
This relates to Yasukuni shrine, because the spirituality they practice is so similar to what I've already been doing, and it's great to find such a bizzare unusual spirituality is practiced and embraced elsewhere, on a fairly large scale, even by government officials.
This Japanese Shinto house of the dead sounds like a place I want to spend the rest of my life!
Just thought I would share that with you. I'm off to study the traditions of the Yasukuni clergy, and how they go about contacting those brave men who died for Emperor Hirohito!
I'm off to pray to the Japanese emperors! Hirohito, I'm with you, your faithful POW!
Could you imagine if there was a shrine in Germany that housed the souls of Adolf Hitler and the soldiers of the Third Reich??
And Angela Merkel, and German politicians went there to adore, venerate, invoke, and pay homage to their spirits??Lol! American Media would be all over that!!!
But I've never seen American media say anything about this controversial shrine in Japan, a home and priesthood for the spirits of war criminals responsible for some of the worst atrocities I've ever heard of.
What do you think is the reason for this double standard?
Last edited by a moderator: