is the Japanese term for a state of pollution and defilement, important particularly in

Shinto Shinto () is a religion from Japan. Classified as an East Asian religion by scholars of religion, its practitioners often regard it as Japan's indigenous religion and as a nature religion. Scholars sometimes call its practitioners ''Shint ...

as a religious term. Typical causes of ''kegare'' are the contact with any form of death, childbirth (for both parents), disease, and menstruation, and acts such as

rape Rape is a type of sexual assault usually involving sexual intercourse or other forms of sexual penetration carried out against a person without their consent. The act may be carried out by physical force, coercion, abuse of authority, or ...

. In Shinto, ''kegare'' is a form of '' tsumi'' (

taboo A taboo or tabu is a social group's ban, prohibition, or avoidance of something (usually an utterance or behavior) based on the group's sense that it is excessively repulsive, sacred, or allowed only for certain persons.''Encyclopædia Britannica ...

violation), which needs to be somehow remedied by the person responsible.Iwanami Japanese dictionary, 6th Edition (2008), DVD version, "Tsumi" This condition can be remedied through purification rites called '' misogi'' and '' harae''. ''Kegare'' can have an adverse impact not only on the person directly affected, but also to the community they belong to. ''Kegare'' is not a form of moral judgment, but rather a spontaneous reaction to amoral natural forces. Whether the defiling was caused by a deliberate act, as for example in the case of a crime, or by an external event, such as illness or death, is secondary. It is therefore not an equivalent of sin.

Death as a source of ''kegare''

The concept of ''kegare'' from death still has considerable force within Japanese society, even during Buddhist funerals. Death and everything having to do with it are seen as a primary source of defilement. This is why, after the death of one of its members, a family will not send to friends and relatives the usual postcards with seasonal greetings during summer and winter, replacing them with letters of excuses. Those who attend a Buddhist funeral receive a small bag of salt to purify themselves before they return to their homes, in order to avoid bringing ''kegare'' to their families. The family's ''

kami are the deities, divinities, spirits, phenomena or "holy powers", that are venerated in the Shinto religion. They can be elements of the landscape, forces of nature, or beings and the qualities that these beings express; they can also be the sp ...

'' must be protected as much as possible from contact with death, blood, and disease. A still common consequence of this is the habit to give up the traditional New Year visit (''

hatsumōde is the first Buddhist temple or Shinto shrine visit of the Japanese New Year. Many visit on the first, second, or third day of the year as most are off work on those days. Generally, wishes for the new year are made, new ''omamori'' (charms or a ...

'') to a

Shinto shrine A is a structure whose main purpose is to house ("enshrine") one or more ''kami'', the deities of the Shinto religion. Overview Structurally, a Shinto shrine typically comprises several buildings. The ''honden''Also called (本殿, meanin ...

if a death in the family has occurred within the last year. Shinto priests (the ''

kannushi A , also called , is a person responsible for the maintenance of a as well as for leading worship of a given .* ''Kannushi'' (in Japanese), Iwanami Japanese dictionary, 6th Edition (2008), DVD version The characters for are sometimes also re ...

'') are expected to pay particular attention to avoid this kind of ''kegare'', and must be careful to deal correctly with death and disease. Given how important dealing with death is in religion, this strong death

cannot have been part of

worship from the beginning. The exclusion of death from religious rites became for the first time possible when another religion, Buddhism, could take charge of it.

References

Shinto in Japan Shinto and society Japanese words and phrases Ritual purification {{Shinto-stub

Death as a source of ''kegare''

See also

References