It feels worth asking since it's such a strong expression of your sense of self.
What led you to Shinto? And to Japanese culture in general?
yawns, chuckles at people finally realizing I'm trying to bring something out from the blue hellsite, opens inbox, sees this question, gets up, gets dressed, makes coffee.
Okay let's go.
Let's start with the Japanese culture in general as that is the easiest to trace and leads directly into Shinto. Unsurprising to several people I was, and am, still very much into Anime as a medium. I cut my teeth on Sailor Moon, Gundam, Outlaw Star and Rurouni Kenshin. I hung out with the weeb crowd at school but was more interested in other things it had to offer. I read through Hagekure in my mid teens, a retelling of the 47 Ronin, and I kind of ended up with a slight hyperfixation. I took several martial arts classes in college and joined the anime club. I kind of was a stereotypical weeb/dojo bro for a bit. [we all make mistakes]
As I aged, I started to take more interest in the less touristy and weeb/dojo bro side of things. And that's... kind of where I'm at now with Japanese culture. I read Unseen Japan a lot, have opinions on Let's ask Shogo [mostly good], Dogen is funny to me, and I still watch anime when I have the time.
As for the Shinto side of things.
Gods how do I even say this without sounding like an urban fantasy protagonist? Do I just lean into it?
Okay so I need you to understand that I was raised uniquely by a man who loved nature, by a reformed farm girl living in a small city. Animals were always a part of my life and I was put to work in the summer on Grandda's farm. It was great.
So I got to be outside a lot, do a lot of wandering, horseback ride, and think on the vast empty that is the Central Utah Badlands. [I want to take a side note and say that to the Utahn, the stones are the Gods.] I was often awestruck by nature and how it felt alive even when it was dead quiet and empty. I always had that daishizen or big nature energy understanding. And let me also tangent again that daishizen is a big part of Shinto and I generally talk about it as awe of the energy nature brings.
Like, have you ever been caught in a thunderstorm in the highland steppe? Ever seen the Colorado Plateau's red rock canyons? Caught in the mighty rapids of the Snake River? This stuff sticks with you.
I was more aware of how this energy felt and when I was Mormon it was taught to me that it was God's creation. Looking back at it now I think I doubted that. I think I didn't buy into that. It was too... neat. But it's what the authorities in my life said and I didn't have much to doubt them on. I ended up finding something in Mormonism that could be used as an argument that there were spirits all around us and that everything can have a spirit and is sacred in a way.
So I was already preconditioned towards animism, and I had an interest in Japanese culture and art, so... things kind of collided and I ended up joining the international Fushimi Inari kou for a while and now am part of the Shusse Inari kou. Mind this was all after transition and falling in love with another AMAB trans femme and losing my Mormon faith.
Hell I remember that part vividly, I was catching cheap sushi with a friend and we were talking about Attachment leads to suffering which is a Buddhist Ideal, and I expressed some squeamishness about it because why would one want to suffer. They put it to me so plainly that "Well, think of it less we are all condemned to suffer, but what is worth the suffering." Something in that exact moment lit up my mind and I was freed from so much mental anguish about being a queer woman, and that being myself and loving who I loved was worth the suffering.
... This also might explain my leans towards the Buddhist syncretic side of Shinto practices too.
Anyway, great question. Thank you. 🙇♀️
