Shrines are an important part of every Rokugani’s life, regardless of social status, caste, or profession. A shrine’s ceremonies ensure crops are healthy, keep disease away, and prevent natural disasters. A shrine’s attendants bring one into the world, record one’s birth, and divine one’s purpose. After the fifth anniversary of life, one returns to the shrine, receives one’s childhood name, and is formally introduced to one’s ancestors. One is married at the shrine; one joins the ancestors at the shrine. When one stumbles and the soul is stained, it is rarely so bad that the shrine cannot cleanse it. The shrine is the axle of a person’s life, all seasons turning around the sacred space within. This is where Heaven touches the earth, where priests lay offerings at the altar and snatch living souls from the mouths of fickle spirits. Rokugan is the land where gods once walked, where every thing is the home of a living soul. There is no village without some manner of shrine, be it a mighty complex of arched rooftops and vast blessed chambers, or a single grey statue flickering with the dim light of the kami.
Why Visit A Shrine?
The presence of a shrine within a day’s travel of a community is considered essential and practical, not optional and esoteric. If there were no shrine, the natural world would be out of balance, harvests would rot, and lesser Fortunes could not witness the devotion of the people. Daily life brings people into regular contact with spiritually staining substances that attract misfortune. Were it not for their shrine, these would accumulate and invite tragedy. By visiting a shrine, a person cleanses the soul of this dirtiness, as one might wash a stain from linen cloth.
Shrine services are invaluable to villages and cities alike. They offer midwifery services and are often a village’s only obstetric choice. The shrine keeps records of every childbirth, including a map of the night sky at the moment of birth. Such records are useful for marriage arrangements, and happy marriages are often owed to the diligence of shrine attendants. Divinations by shrine keepers provide valuable insights, both for the farmer’s harvest and the general’s conquests. Most of all, the shrine is where one can find servants of the enshrined spirit and humbly ask for wisdom.
Servants of the Spirits
The clergy of Rokugan occupy a special place in the Celestial Order. They are higher than the heimin class, but most are considered lower than the buke and kuge. The exception are shugenja, who are samurai by right of birth. As with other castes, there is a distinct order of social rank within the clergy. The highest-ranking member is the Emperor himself as the head of the Shintao, and therefore all, religion. Beneath the Emperor are the shugenja, who are in turn followed by the priests. At the bottom of the caste are the shrine keepers, who serve as religious assistants and protectors. Monks are also technically clergy, but they are not a part of the Celestial Order.
Most shrines are maintained by at least one shrine keeper. Although they are the lowest-ranked clergy, they are essential to the shrine’s maintenance, keeping the grounds clean and sanctified. Shrine keepers are versed in basic rituals, herbalism, lesser divinations, and a collection of folk traditions known as mikodō. In addition, shrine keepers are charged with a shrine’s protection, demonstrating some martial prowess with bows and naginata, or sword-staffs. Because of their martial duties, shrine keepers are usually drawn from the buke; often they are the children of ashigaru or jizamurai. However, there is no social requirement, so they can also come from the bonge. In that case, it is a great honor, as it is one of the only ways in which a farmer’s children might ascend in the Celestial Order.
Priests are the shrine’s administrators and primary caretakers. Their job is to undertake all necessary ceremonies, assist visitors with spiritual needs, and provide advice and guidance. Priests do not enjoy the same close relationship to the spirits as shugenja, but they are capable of basic blessings and auguries and can occasionally entreat the kami through ritual. One born into any caste can become a priest, although it is a difficult position to achieve. The priest must not only demonstrate adequate spiritual knowledge, but they must also demonstrate a rapport with the enshrined spirit.
Shugenja are priests of the samurai class. Only those who have been embraced by the kami can receive this title. They are sensitive to the invisible world of spirits, able to sense and influence the kami and commune with Fortunes and ancestors. A priest’s rituals are mere shades of what shugenja are capable of. The kami only embrace one in a thousand, and this rare gift must be cultivated from an early age. This connection affords shugenja considerable power, as they are able to directly entreat the kami to manifest in myriad ways. Shugenja are not bound to shrines, unless they choose so.
Shrine Maintenance
The concept of spiritual cleanliness is central to Shintao beliefs. Things accumulate spiritual “dirtiness,” and shrines are no exception. For this reason, priests and shrine keepers keep their shrines in a constant state of renewal. At any given time, a shrine is being cleaned, repaired, or rebuilt. Wards, blessing ropes, and icons are replaced regularly, and the enshrined spirit is released at least once a year to allow the shrine keepers to clean its shintai. Perfectly serviceable sections of the shrine, with nothing visibly wrong, must be torn down and rebuilt regardless. Some shrines go so far as to build an entire replica and move operations to the new shrine, ritualistically disassembling the old.
Because this constant maintenance creates a demand for materials, shrines are rather expensive. Some of the poorer rural clans, like the Sparrow or Hare, must make do with miniature shrines called hokora, which look not unlike stone dollhouses.
Shrine Economics
Commerce is considered inherently dirty in Rokugan. Worldly concern over money and possessions is spiritually staining, further chaining one to Ningen-dō. Perhaps it is inevitable for the peasantry, but priests and samurai are expected to be above such things. It is therefore an uncomfortable truth that shrines are reliant on outside funding to operate.
For priests to openly conduct commerce would be disgraceful and could offend the enshrined spirits (especially blessed ancestors), but this only means that shrine leaders must be creative. Coins are commonly accepted offerings, with shrine keepers simply “borrowing” additional materials as needed. Wishing wells provide another source of income. Shrines also expect a modest donation in exchange for major services (like weddings), although they would never ask directly.
Major shrines enjoy the patronage of Great Clan families. For example, the Shrine to Hotei is funded by the Bayushi family, which pays for all its expenses. Such relationships are mutually beneficial, as the shrines provide valuable services to clan samurai, and the clans appear pious for donating large sums to the Fortunes.
One traditional source of revenue is the “Training of the Sainenshō,” or youngest born. It is customary among some nobility to send their youngest heir to receive priestly training, along with a sum of money to cover expenses. As this sum is determined by the shrine (and accepted without question), many shrines compete for students. Just one samurai heir might supply the shrine with adequate funds for several years.
The Shrine, Day to Day
What follows is a typical day at the humble Mezameta shrine, located within the outskirts of the city of Ukabu Mura, or Floating Village. It enshrines the kami of the nearby Kanawa Lake, which feeds the Drowned Merchant River. Legends say that Shinsei once drank from the neighboring waterfall, awakening the spirit of those waters. Although the shrine is important to the growing city, it is relatively small, employing only one priest and a handful of shrine keepers.
Yōji, the shrine’s priest, awakens at the Hour of the Hare and spends half an hour in quiet meditation. The shrine keepers are already sweeping the exterior steps, scrubbing the shrine, and refilling the cleansing basins with blessed water. At the Hour of the Dragon, the priest awakens the kami with a performance on the shakuhachi, a type of bamboo flute, and offers prepared rice cakes. Every day brings a different ceremony; on this day, after Yōji is convinced the offering has been accepted, he asks the kami to aid the farmers in the day’s rice seeding.
The shrine grounds officially open to visitors at the Hour of the Serpent. The priest assigns chores, which today includes greeting visitors and crafting charms for an upcoming festival. Agasha Kiori arrives. After cleansing herself and making offerings, she requests use of the shrine’s gardens. Due to her caste and status as a shugenja, she is afforded whatever she wants, and the keepers stay out of her way.
Halfway into the hour, the shrine keeper named Kokka finally awakens. She is the fifth-born child of an Asako lord, here to fulfill a family duty. For her lack of discipline, she is assigned the reviled task of laundry duty. Yōji pretends not to hear her murmured complaint.
At the Hour of the Horse, the priest takes his lunch, his first meal of the day. Thirty minutes later, Miya Boshin arrives for his daily lesson. Boshin’s father, the local governor, makes regular contributions to the shrine, so Yōji sees to his spiritual education personally.
A rōnin arrives but is stopped at the front gate. He has recently partaken of a spicy hot-pot dish and is therefore not permitted to enter, as this has imbalanced the Fire element within him and he may offend the enshrined kami. The resulting altercation causes Yōji to interrupt Boshin’s lessons to deal with the angered rōnin. Soon, the commotion draws the attention of Agasha Kiori, who approaches the rōnin and whispers in his ear. He grows pale, apologies, and leaves. Kiori then requests the use of the inner shrine, which the grateful Yōji readily gives. The remainder of Boshin’s lessons are uneventful, and he leaves by the end of the hour.
At the Hour of the Goat, Yōji’s paperwork is interrupted by another visitor. Matsu Nioko wishes to have her new sword blessed. As a few shrine keepers prepare to anoint the blade with Kanawa Lake’s waters, the Matsu waits in the worship hall and prays to her ancestors. After the ritual is finished and the sword returned, the grateful Matsu “forgets” a small stack of coins as she leaves, which Yōji deposits in the shrine’s funds
Meanwhile, a student from the Ukabu Mura Dōjō arrives. After cleansing himself, he affixes a paper slip transcribed with a personal wish onto the branch of the shrine’s plum tree. It is a romantic wish. He leaves an offering and then departs.
The Hour of the Monkey begins the shrine keepers’ personal time. They practice their archery, play poetry-based word games, or study the shrine’s scriptures. Kokka spends her time reading the wishes the plum tree has accumulated over the week, taking them down at the end of the hour.
Agasha Kiori is stopped at the gate; she is attempting to take a sacred object from the grounds. The priest cautiously requests that she leave it here, knowing there is little he can do if she does not agree. Thankfully, she does but she must continue her communion and thus announces she will stay the night. The priest accepts this as the best possible outcome, while the others inwardly grumble that they are now running a hotel in addition to a shrine.
The sun nears the horizon at the Hour of the Rooster, closing the shrine to visitors. Yōji plays his shakuhachi to call the kami back to the shrine. It is Kokka’s turn to make the evening offering to Amaterasu. She impresses Yōji with her choice of song, and he mentally notes to personally tend to her development as a priestess. Afterward, the plum tree’s wishes are burned so that they might rise to the Fortunes.
The keepers take their dinner, bathe, and then draw straws to see who will take the first patrol. Yōji ends his day with research in the sacred texts and quiet meditation on the day’s events.
Religious Practices of Rokugan
Although all Fortunism is officially part of the Shintao religion, Fortunist practices vary greatly throughout the Empire. Fortunism is made up of hundreds of localized traditions that are unified by their mythology and a general agreement on foundational beliefs. Each clan follows its own flavor of religious worship, and regional practices vary based on local folk traditions and the spirits that most influence the area. Debates among shugenja schools are common, and the mortal understanding of cosmic forces is ever evolving. Still, while two regions that share a border may not hold the same religious interpretations, there are basic practices that are embraced Empire-wide.
Approaching the Divine
Each enshrined spirit must be approached and worshipped in the way it prefers. With a thousand Fortunes and a thousand thousand other spirits, knowing them all would be impossible. Shrine keepers and priests are able to assist visitors in approaching the spirit in such a way as not to offend it, and there are general patterns of behavior that are dependable enough to fall back on.
Before entering a shrine, a visitor must pass through the torii arch, which cleanses and prepares them to enter sacred space. Bypassing the torii arch is a foul act that invites in the profane, akin to entering a home with muddy shoes. After entering, the visitor washes themself at a cleansing pavilion, rinsing their extremities and mouth, then finally the ladle they use for this purpose. Thusly cleansed, the visitor may now walk the shrine freely or enter the worship hall.
Prayer is usually assisted by shrine keepers or the priest, but those familiar with the shrine need no such guidance. First, the supplicant kneels before the spirit’s icon and presents an offering. For ancestors, this may be something they favored in life, or it may be a symbolic offering of an object they once owned. Offerings to Fortunes vary depending on their nature: Tenjin, the Fortune of Stories and Secrets, accepts a personal secret written on a folded paper slip that is burned at the altar, while Sadahako, the Fortune of Artists, favors an offering of foundation makeup. Kami often accept any offering that pertains to their element. Some common kami offerings include sake, incense, sacred herbs, candles, salt, rice, and preserved fish. Offerings are always made with two bows: the first to pay respects, the second to prove the first was genuine.
After the offering is given, the pilgrim must attract the spirit’s attention. Clapping twice is the most common method, as it expresses joy at being in the spirit’s presence. Ringing a bell, raising one’s voice in song, or performing a dance are also appropriate, although these are usually undertaken by shugenja or shrine keepers and not common pilgrims. Then, the visitor bows again and expresses their wish to converse. After the prayer is finished, a final bow is given, followed by rapid departure.
Unattended rural shrines and abandoned shrines present visitors with a unique challenge: how do they avoid offending a spirit that they know nothing about? With no keepers to guide pilgrims, this can be a risky situation, as behaviors or offerings that appease one spirit may offend the next. In the absence of shugenja to ask the spirit directly, the safest bet is to defer to humility. A supplicant should keep their eyes on the ground and their head lowered, apologize earnestly, and ask to make amends. Honest mistakes can be forgiven if the pilgrim means well and shows proper deference.
Religious Prohibitions
Spiritual cleanliness is Fortunism’s primary concern. The soul is likened to a white cloth, and coming into contact with dirty conditions, known as kegare, stains the soul with filth. This makes one offensive to spirits, especially ancestors and kami, and attracts misfortune. To keep the soul unburdened, there are many practices one must avoid.
Sweat, blood, and other secretions are filthy and to be avoided. This is why manual labor is beneath samurai and the priesthood. The consumption of meat is also considered dirty; poultry and fish are the least filthy and are socially acceptable to eat, while red meat is widely reviled and forbidden. Certain other foods, such as spicy dishes and fungi, are also considered dirty if eaten to excess (a little bit is fine, though). When one comes into contact with these things, one must undergo a ritual purification to restore one’s inner balance. For this reason, samurai purify themselves daily, and priests avoid them altogether (often priests are vegetarians and leave manual labor to the shrine keepers). Commoners are already assumed to be dirty due to their professions and lot in life. As such, while they still undergo shrine purifications, it is with far less regularity than samurai. Some only do so at festivals.
Handling dead flesh is among the highest religious transgressions. Death is a strong source of kegare, and it clings to things. Even if done by accident, touching dead flesh coats the soul with spiritual filth. If a samurai were to die in such a state, they would not be permitted into Yomi. However, even this condition may still be cleansed through a more complex purification ritual, one known by every shugenja and many priests. It entails passing through a torii arch, undertaking a ritualistic bath, and symbolically becoming “reborn” in the presence of an enshrined spirit. Hinin are not even allowed onto shrine grounds, lest their very presence offend the enshrined spirit and drive it away, invoking calamity on everyone.
Commerce is also staining, as it further entangles one with the physical world. Money in and of itself is harmless, and Daikoku, the Fortune of Wealth, is one of the Seven Great Fortunes. It is acts of regular trade and gambling, and obsession with transient material things, that sicken the mind and stain the soul. Pious merchants purify themselves regularly for this reason.
Finally, negative emotion is a source of spiritual stain. The three sins—fear, desire, and regret—attract misfortune and create evils in the world. Shrine purifications are meant not only to cleanse the body and soul, but also to calm the mind and release these thoughts in places where they will be obliterated.
Purifying Rituals
The methods of purification vary widely between shrines, depending on the enshrined spirit. Commonly, a visitor washes their hands and face, then rests in meditation while a shrine keeper or priest waves a wand covered in dozens of paper streamers. The wand attracts impurities like a duster might attract tangible filth. The visitor then takes the wand and burns it, symbolically cleansing themself of ills. Another method is sprinkling the visitor with salt, which absorbs impure essences. The visitor then sweeps the salt out of the shrine while repeating a sacred mantra.
Yet another common method is misogi, a ritual purification by water. After fasting for a short period, the participant stands bare beneath an ice-cold waterfall while chanting a sacred mantra. Negative thoughts and spiritual impurities are washed away. Misogi can also be performed with cold still waters, and most shrines have a well for this purpose.
It is also believed that the elements, in their purest forms, can banish spiritual impurity. Thus, shugenja will purify themselves through feats of elemental endurance. Walking across hot coals, plunging their hands into boiling water, or meditating bare on a cold, windy outcropping are all physical feats shugenja might attempt in order to purify themselves in the absence of shrines.
Priests and Shugenja of Emma-Ō
Every Great Clan boasts a sect of priests of Emma-Ō in their lands, as do some Minor Clans. Although they all serve the same Fortune, these sects honor local customs and the traditions of their patron clan. Shrines staffed by these priests are rare, as they instead travel constantly, carrying their sacred artifacts with them. Because Rokugani do not commonly worship Emma-Ō (instead praying to Jizō, the Fortune of Mercy, in matters relating to death), the priests of Emma-Ō serve an important function: honoring the Fortune of Death so that no others need draw his attention.
Shugenja of Emma-Ō are especially rare, identified early by signs of the Fortune’s blessing, such as jagged birthmarks. Distinguished by their white robes and ceremonial sode (shoulder guards), shugenja of Emma-Ō are trained exclusively to commune with their patron Fortune, to interpret his rare and cryptic replies, and most terrifyingly, to call upon his favor.
Among their greatest abilities is the capacity to sway Emma-Ō’s decision regarding the deceased’s next destination. As temple monks conduct a funeral ceremony, a shugenja of Emma-Ō, dressed as the Fortune to remind all of his presence, quietly witnesses the ceremony. Only after the rites have been completed, and all guests have left, does the shugenja step forward to perform their duty. Invoking the Great Judge, Emma-Ō, the shugenja conducts a ceremonial trial. The shugenja argues on behalf of the deceased, recalling their deeds in life and humbly asking for a better “sentence.” The shugenja may request only a brief time in Meido for the departed, or even for an immediate delivery into Yomi, the Realm of Blessed Ancestors.
Although Emma-Ō’s priests and shugenja are universally respected, they are held at arm’s length due to the nature of their duties. Death’s besmirching influence is ever-present with them, and after they have conducted their duties, they are honored, given gifts, and quickly sent on their way. Their presence outside of funerals is considered unlucky. Peasants avoid them, the superstitious fear them, and only foolish or desperate samurai seek them out. Theirs is a lonely existence, but also a necessary duty only they can embrace.
Invocations
Invocations are the techniques and prayers wielded by shugenja, the elite priests of the samurai class who turn their unmatched spiritual potential to the gravest of affairs: researching and understanding the nature of the universe, suppressing the powers of the Shadowlands, and engaging in wars among the clans.
Kami are not obligated to answer the call of a shugenja, nor do they tend to react to frivolous entreaties. Shugenja only attempt a given invocation generally once per day except under special circumstances such as healing or warfare. If they are successful in their prayer, the kami have done as asked and it would be unseemly to request more. If the attempt ended in failure, the kami have made their answer clear.
Additionally, if a shugenja attempts to use an invocation in a way that falls far outside of its relevant context (for instance, attempting to summon vast quantities of jade to turn a profit, rather than to smite evil), the kami may not answer at all. The kami are not at the beck and call of the shugenja; if anything, the relationship works the other way around.
Proper Offerings
Shugenja enjoy a special relationship with the kami, even over and above other priests. While anyone can theoretically reach out to the kami and receive their blessing, and all priests train in the art of doing so to some degree, only shugenja know the secrets required to unlock the pinnacle of these powers. The shugenja schools dedicate considerable resources to safeguarding their secrets, and they crush any who try to steal their sacred lore.
At the heart of even the most potent invocation is a simple transaction of faith in exchange for power. A shugenja’s offering symbolizes their devotion to the spirits who grant them their incredible abilities. While material offerings might seem odd for spiritual beings, these sacraments are extremely efficacious. A trained shugenja can do without them, but it makes performing the invocation more difficult, as the shugenja’s own spirit must bear the burden in place of the offering.
Offering Types
Different types of spirits prefer different offerings, some examples of which are provided below:
- Air Spirits: Incense, feathers, flowers
- Earth Spirits: Salt, soil or stones from sacred places, seeds
- Water Spirits: Coins, seashells, precious materials, seaweed, sake
- Fire Spirits: Kindling, paper, ash, small flammable objects
- Fortunes: Texts, food, origami, works of art
- Ancestor Spirits: Food, incense, sake or other libations
Rituals
Rituals are religious ceremonies performed to appease the kami and draw forth their blessings. Unlike invocations, rituals are not the rarefied secrets of shugenja schools; instead, they are day-to-day practices performed by many religious functionaries throughout Rokugan. Still, they are miraculous occurrences, if subtle ones. Most priests, shrine keepers, and court mystics know and perform rituals on a regular basis. Many monks and shugenja also know how to perform rituals.
Sacred Sites
Every shrine is a reflection of its enshrined spirit. A person can discern much about a spirit’s nature by the layout of its shrine, the objects in it, and its traditions. A shrine is a spirit’s home, designed to suit its preferences.
Shrines can appear anywhere a spirit is said to regularly visit or dwell. One can find them in cities or villages, in castles, or alone and far from civilization. Multiple shrines may share the same grounds, or they may even be incorporated into Shinseist temples. One may even find a shrine in the home of a samurai. The thing that ultimately identifies a shrine is the presence of a shintai, an object or feature capable of containing a spirit. Some shintai are objects crafted by shugenja, but the majority are natural features where spirits dwell. An ancient oak may be the home of a tree spirit (kodama), a waterfall may be the house of playful water kami, and Sengen Mountain is the palace of the Fortune that gave the mountain its name. In these cases, a shrine is erected nearby and designed to draw focus to the place of wonder where the spirits live.
Shrine Features
The following features and elements tend to appear in most (if not all) shrines.
Torii Arches
The torii arch marks the entrance to the shrine and the crossing point onto sacred ground. They are considered sacred gateways into blessed space. Crossing beneath a torii arch helps prepare the mind and body for purification. Visitors are required to enter a shrine through the archway, and some shrines are fenced off so as to make the torii the only possible entrance. Sometimes a path runs under multiple arches, forming a hall of sorts.
Usually constructed from blessed wood, torii can also be made from stone or plated with rare metals. Often they are very simple, consisting of two columns topped with two horizontal beams. The humblest consists of only the columns, replacing the upper lintels with a length of blessed shimenawa rope. Torii can also be elaborate, with pointed flanges, flared pillars, curved beams, and decorations like ropes, tags, and statues. If painted, torii are almost always a fiery red to repel malicious spirits.
Honden
The main hall, the honden, is the most sacred building on the shrine’s grounds. This is where the shintai is housed and the sacred artifacts are kept. The honden is considered the home of the enshrined spirit. Only priests, shrine keepers, shugenja, and the Emperor may enter it. Others might inadvertently offend the spirit that dwells within.
Honden are sometimes built into the worship hall or set into a natural feature of the shrine, such as a cave or pond. Some rural shrines may not even have a honden, such as the Shrine of the Ki-Rin and the Shrine to Sengen, the Fortune of Mount Sengen. In these cases, a statue or other such object fulfills the honden’s function.
Haiden
The haiden is the shrine’s worship hall, where ceremonies take place. It is typically connected to the honden by a hallway, massive sliding shōji screen, or other such portal. The haiden usually consists of a main hall connected to several smaller inner shrines where visitors can worship in privacy. Icons of local Fortunes and smaller shrines to ancestors can be found there.
Some haiden incorporate architectural defenses, such as archer ramparts, hidden escape passages, and a sloped foundation. Such worship halls include shrines to Hachiman and Bishamon, as well as wealthy rural shrines at risk for bandit attacks.
Bell Tower
Bells repel evil spirits, so the shōrō, or bell tower, is considered a lucky building. Most shōrō are only “towers” in the loosest sense, rarely standing taller than two stories. Other types of “bell towers” include the one at the Shrine to Hotei, where the bell is incorporated into the main entrance gate, and the one-story “caged bell” at the Moshi family’s seaside Amaterasu’s Shrine.
Living Quarter
Shrine keepers live communally on the grounds in modular rooms formed by thin shōji screens, while priests often have their own one-room house separate from the other quarters. Amenities tend to be simple to avoid distracting from devotion to the Fortunes. Other parts of the shrine’s residence might include a library, a dōjō (especially in shrines to martial Fortunes), and a kitchen.
Guest quarters are rare. Visitors are usually not allowed on shrine grounds after dark, and certainly not during the Hour of the Ox, when nighttime spirits are especially active. Fortunists believe the twilight hour is when the borders between Spirit Realms are at the weakest, so many shrines shoo visitors away at sunset. When a shrine must host guests, it is usually either in the bell tower (spirits avoid the bell) or in the residential quarters in a temporary room.
PerformAnce Stage
Performances for an enshrined spirit are a daily part of shrine life, so some shrines incorporate some type of blessed stage. This is where keepers stage dances and plays. In larger shrines, this might even be an entire theater equipped for Nō.
Cleansing Pavilion
Known as the chōzuya, the cleansing pavilion is where guests purify themselves before entering the shrine proper. Usually this is a shallow roofed well, but it sometimes incorporates a natural water source, such as a stream or creek. Guests ladle water over their hands, mouth, and feet before rinsing the ladle itself.
Gardens
Shrine gardens offer quiet places for visitors and keepers to meditate in. The garden type reflects the nature of the enshrined spirit, such as stone gardens for martial spirits, flower gardens for nature spirits, sand gardens for ancestors, and so on. At the shrines of the Seven Fortunes, the gardens are cultivated to resemble landscapes of the Spirit Realms, so that the visiting Fortune may feel more at home.
Reflection Pool
A popular feature with visitors and a shrine keeper’s nightmare to clean, the reflection pool symbolizes the illusionary nature of the world. The entire shrine is reflected in the pool, but only a slight ripple causes it to vanish and reveal the completely different reality beneath. Thus, the reflection pool serves as a reminder that the Spirit Realms are ever present.
Statue Guardians
Stone animal statues are common sights around shrines. Usually they stand at the entrance, but they can also be found on rooftops, carved into corners, or standing at the apex of curved bridges. The purpose of these statues is to scare away unwelcome spirits and guard the shrine against curses. It is believed the statues would come to life if certain malicious ghosts were to appear. The type of animal depicted varies between regions, but the most common are lion-dogs (known as komainu), foxes (such as at shrines to Inari), and boars.
Shimenawa Ropes
Shimenawa are straw ropes meant to encircle sacred spaces. Decorated with jagged strips of paper and straw tassels, shimenawa are commonly found around sacred trees and stones and throughout the shrine. Such ropes come in two varieties: blessing ropes, which ward against evil spirits and create “homes” for kami to dwell within, and binding ropes, which contain spirits and keep them from leaving. Priests sometimes encircle houses or even entire villages with shimenawa in order to bless them and keep them safe from supernatural harm.
Kami Shrines
Shrines to kami are generally simple, often incorporating the landscape or a geographical feature that serves as the kami’s shintai. They can be as humble as a single lantern at the foot of a waterfall, a rope tied around a moss-covered stone, or a dollhouse-sized replica of a larger shrine. Whatever marks the sacred space is usually a yorishiro, an object that attracts and pleases kami and benevolent spirits. These blend in with their natural surroundings, preserving the harmony of the sacred space. Kami shrines are typically remote, lacking torii arches and purification basins, but they can sometimes be found incorporated into larger shrines, such as those to Fortunes.
Shrines to Fortunes
Fortunist shrines are the most consistently similar, but they still vary among clans in layout and architectural features. Shrines to Greater Fortunes are spread throughout the land. Each Greater Fortune has a primary shrine, from which all others devoted to that Fortune derive their layout and teachings.
Fortunist shrines are often the largest, sometimes even as large as temples, and they almost always have at least one torii arch and a honden where the shintai is kept. This shintai is usually an object once held by the Fortune (especially at their primary shrine) or an icon bearing their likeness. A stairway or path leads to the torii arch, followed by a square-shaped enclosed space containing the shrine’s other structures. Fortunist shrines are built to be as unobtrusive among natural surroundings as possible: creeks may run through them, the worship hall may be built around a sacred oak or stone, or the shrine’s path may be carved dangerously into a mountainside.
Shrines to the Seven Great Fortunes are often incorporated into lesser shrines. These shrines to the Great Fortunes usually resemble shrine-shaped birdhouses and contain miniature versions of everything a fullsized shrine might require.
Ancestral Shrines
All major shrines devote a small space for worshiping one’s ancestors. This is usually an empty altar on which visitors place the shintai of their ancestor, usually a small wooden tablet bearing the ancestor’s name.
However, every samurai family maintains an ancestral shrine on their grounds, either set aside in a quiet place, or incorporated directly into the home. Such shrines are unobtrusive and humble, incorporating likenesses of each honored ancestor, usually in the form of statues or paintings. Also enshrined is at least one object that belonged to each ancestor in life, which serves to attract the ancestors’ presence.
Great Clan families also maintain shrines to their founders. These ancestral shrines are the grandest and could be easily confused for Fortunist shrines, as they incorporate similar layouts and consistent features, such as torii arches, cleansing basins, and a worship hall. Shrine attendants exemplify the founder’s philosophies and seek to emulate them. The largest of these shrines are those of the clan founders and the Shrine of the Hantei.
Kamidana
The kamidana is a miniature household altar to the kami or a particular Fortune. It rests within a little alcove just large enough to accommodate kneeling or on a shelf and contains small sculptures, charms, blessing ropes, and often a humble shintai of sorts.
Most Rokugani homes do not have a kamidana. Samurai and peasants both reserve such space for shrines to their ancestors. However, many urban shugenja find it useful to have a kamidana in their home so they can commune with the kami without visiting a city shrine. Samurai who work closely with shugenja or are especially reverent of kami, such as the Shiba of the Phoenix and the Mirumoto of the Dragon, also tend to have a kamidana in their home. Kamidana can be found on boats (especially those of the Mantis Clan) as well, so that sailors at sea can still worship the Fortunes.
Worship Practices of Samurai
Bushi cannot help but dirty themselves in the course of their duties, coming regularly into contact with blood, sweat, and other spiritually staining substances. Furthermore, the stresses of a warrior’s life, including killing, can be spiritually imbalancing. Bushi must purify themselves regularly so that the consequences of their duties do not attract spiritual misfortune. Blessings and divinations are also useful for warriors seeking an edge in coming trials.
Samurai families venerate their dead and seek the guidance of those who came before. Samurai also worship their clan founders and legendary heroes, believing that these souls may favor them with supernatural aid. This is true for courtier and bushi alike; in court or the battlefield, the guidance of one’s ancestors can tip the scales to victory. Every samurai home has a shrine specifically for ancestor worship, but ancestors can also be sought at the local shrine, where the keepers may divine answers to specific questions. If an ancestor is displeased with a descendant, they may make life difficult with curses and misfortunes, or even haunt their descendant.
When an ancestor has no living descendants to be worshipped by, they may feel that they have been forgotten. This can transform them into muenbotoke, listless spirits that haunt the living with curses. To avoid this, samurai may also worship ancestors who are not directly related to them. It is not unheard of to “claim” an ancestor as one’s own, not because of blood relation, but out of admiration for their deeds. As it honors their history, this is considered a noble practice.
Ancestor worship is far more common among samurai than Fortune or kami worship. When samurai worship the Fortunes, it is often to gain a specific boon, such as Hachiman’s favor in battle, Benten’s blessing for a performance, or Jizō’s aid in hastening an ancestor’s time in Meido.
Worship Practices of Peasants
For Rokugan’s bonge class, religious matters are much simpler. When they need the assistance of a particular Fortune or spirit, they go to the shrine and make an offering. When something goes wrong, the priest identifies which spirit was offended, and the peasant makes another offering. It is not necessary for peasants to be well versed in sacred texts or to know various rites. The priest and the shrine keepers handle all of that. Peasants need only participate in festivals, make regular offerings, and be reverent and respectful.
A peasant’s worldly concerns rarely extend beyond their home and the land they cultivate. As a result, their view of the Fortunes is simplified and transaction based. By worshipping the Fortunes, they are either asking for boons, such as healthy crops, long lives, and good personal fortune, or they are appeasing Fortunes to avoid negative repercussions on these aspects of life
Peasants also worship their ancestors, but to them it is a preventative and conciliatory practice. They leave offerings so the dead will stay in the realm where they belong. For peasants, seeking guidance from one’s ancestors is unthinkable. Upon death, peasant souls do not go to Yomi. The life of a peasant is laden with worldly concerns that thwart this possibility; Yomi is only for samurai. Peasant dead instead go to Meido to await reincarnation, or a realm of punishment, like Gaki-dō or Tōshigoku. Therefore, peasants are fearful of their ancestors’ ghosts for very good reason: if a peasant’s ancestor returns, it is not to give blessings, but curses!
Folk Practices
From between the cracks within religious practice come folk beliefs that offer ways a common person might obtain spiritual aid. Of course, most shugenja regard them as ignorant nonsense.
In Crane lands, it is believed bad luck can be banished by throwing seven peas into a well and fasting for the rest of the day. The Shiba believe that tracing a kanji character over a diagram will grant them the virtue they transcribe. Unicorn samurai believe writing the name of a Fortune on their right arm will grant that Fortune’s blessing. In the Scorpion provinces, drinking the fresh blood of a rooster is said to cure indigestion. When one does not have access to the religious experts of a shrine, local folk traditions offer alternatives.
The Fox's Tale
A common folk tale retold in plays concerns the summoning of a fox spirit by the disowned son of a samurai lord. The son bargains with the fox spirit, promising that if it will haunt his father, he will bring the fox a bushel of fried tofu every full moon. The fox torments the samurai lord with tricks and misfortune until his reputation and wealth are in tatters. One night, the young man leaves out a single piece of tofu from his monthly offering, enraging the betrayed fox, who reveals the arrangement to the samurai lord.
The lord confronts his son, and they argue and threaten throughout the night, much to the entertainment of the fox. Finally, however, the fox grows bored, at which point it settles the matter by devouring them both
Shrine Rituals
Shrines are important places for samurai and commoners alike. Throughout their lives, they will visit shrines for important ceremonies and life events. Here are but a few:
Weddings
Weddings are especially joyous occasions and are almost always held at a shrine. Wedding ceremonies vary greatly between regions, incorporating different local customs, clan traditions, and accommodations for the enshrined spirit, who is also in attendance. Even so, there is a general ceremonial foundation for weddings held throughout the Empire.
For samurai, a shrine plays a large part in a couple’s pairing well before the wedding ever takes place. Shrines keep records of every local birth and corresponding star maps. These help nakōdo, who arrange marriages, to fulfill their duties by comparing constellations and birth dates to find compatible matches. Marriages must be reported to (and approved by) a clan or Imperial nakōdo, a service a shrine willingly conducts on behalf of participants.
Peasant weddings are usually conducted by a priest, while the marriage of samurai is always overseen by a shugenja. During the ceremony, the couple bathe and are purified with salt, and then don the traditional wedding garments. The enshrined spirit is released and invited to join the ceremony. The priest or shugenja leads the commitment, and three oaths are exchanged along with three shared cups of blessed sake. Then, the betrothed approach the altar, make their marital vows, and express their gratitude to the enshrined spirit, leaving offerings as guided by the officiant.
At the start of this ceremony, the one who is leaving their family is dressed in white. This represents a symbolic “death” in their former family. As the ceremony continues, this participant sheds this outer layer to reveal red, representing a “rebirth,” and then finally this layer is shed, revealing the colors and mon of their new family. In the case of the peasantry, these garments are supplied by the shrine and are often the finest clothes the couple will ever wear.
When the ceremony is complete, a banquet is held in honor of the new couple. Unlike the ceremony, the banquet is open to guests. Speeches, poetry, performances, and games are common.
Weddings in the Great Clans
All Great Clan families have their own version of the wedding ceremony, so it is important that priests have some idea of how their traditions differ, lest offense be offered to either party. Following are some examples of these varying traditions:
- The Dragon rarely conduct marriages within shrines or temples. Instead, a traditional Dragon wedding is held in an awe-inspiring natural surrounding.
- Phoenix weddings are held in a shrine to a Fortune, usually Hotei (as contentment in marriage is considered more important than romance). Levity during the marriage ceremony is considered disgraceful, but the reception afterward is prone to joyous spectacle.
- A Soshi always officiates over a Scorpion wedding, since those conducted by Yogo are unlucky. An exchange of masks is often a part of the ceremony. Traditionally, Scorpion wedding banquets are open to all, even peasants (although the classes do not mingle).
- Minor Clans embrace their own esoteric traditions. For instance, the Dragonfly reject all arranged marriages, Sparrow weddings are held at home (there are no shrines large enough in Sparrow lands), and the Centipede conduct their weddings at sunrise. Mantis always get married on water (whether at sea on a ship or on a raft in a river) and ship captains often perform the marriage.
Funerals
Fortunist traditions regard death as chief among spiritual stains. This is because death clings to things; anything that is associated with the dead is “unclean.” This is in contrast to Shinseist tradition, in which the contemplation of death is encouraged. Therefore, funerals are overseen by monks, not priests, and they are held in temples, never a shrine. Virtually no Fortunist funeral traditions exist, leaving last rites to be conducted according to the Tao of Shinsei. This is to protect shrines and their servants from the residual influence of death and the displeased attentions of their patron Fortune. Shrines are places of life, not death.
Even so, Fortunism stills plays an important role in the funeral ceremony, in the form of the priests of Emma-Ō. Sects that serve the Fortune of Death travel the lands for one explicit purpose: ensuring the souls of the departed can find their way to Emma-Ō’s judgment and their proper destination.
Battlefield Funerals of the Lion Clan
After a battle, dead samurai are gathered by hinin and cremated, and then their ashes and belongings are returned to their families. Once a family receives their loved one’s ashes, a typical funeral is held at a temple.
The Lion, however, view the battlefield differently than do others. To die in battle is the greatest aspiration of a Lion samurai: to anoint the land with their lifeblood and mix their ashes with the bones of the earth. In the Lion’s tradition, funeral rites are held on the battlefield, not by monks, but by priests of Emma-Ō. This ceremony is a closely guarded secret of the Kitsu-descended Emma-Ō shugenja. In the absence of family, the deceased’s ancestors are summoned instead, and it is they who judge the departed soul first. If the ancestors judge the departed worthy, they accompany the spirit to Emma-Ō. Whatever happens to those the ancestors find lacking, the Lion will not say.
Festivals
Conducting the many annual festivals of Rokugan is an important function of a shrine. The Rokugani calendar is rich with annual festivals, to say nothing of the hundreds of unique local festivals celebrated throughout every province. Even the most remote village has at least one unique festival celebrating something important to the local culture. Some festivals date from the founding of the Empire and before, while others are recent inventions of daimyō or Emperors. Festivals acknowledge the changing seasons and commemorate important historical events, and they are held in honor of the Fortunes, honored ancestors, and other spirits.
While each festival has different customs, most are conducted in a similar way. The priest or shugenja performs a ritual purification of the shrine and the path where the venerated spirit is expected to travel. Shugenja also undertake grueling purification rituals, such as plunging their hands into boiling water or standing on burning coals. Then, the spirit of the festival is entreated to awaken. The shugenja explains why they have imposed upon the kami or Fortune and invites them to enter the shrine’s shintai.
Once the shugenja confirms that the shintai is inhabited, it is placed within a portable container and paraded through the city or village, where citizens greet it according to local custom and conduct performances for the spirit’s entertainment. Each festival has a different set of such entertainments, such as Nō theater, dragon dances, or firework displays. Different spirits each have their own preferences: Benten is said to enjoy Kabuki, while Bishamon prefers sumai matches, and Hachiman favors reenactments of battles. While festival goers enjoy these displays, they are ultimately meant for the enshrined spirit. The spirits are pleased when mortals drink, frolic, and enjoy themselves, so the entire village participates in the revelry, with unique festival foods and games offered throughout. With the enshrined spirit in attendance, the shrine can offer many special services that would otherwise require special timing: fortunes are told, conditions are treated, and spiritual consultations are freely given.
Near the festival’s end, a great banquet is held in the spirit’s honor. The meal is communal and shared by all who attend the festival. Blessed sake is a frequent feature, as are foods that are forbidden throughout much of the year but permitted during these feasts. For instance, the Festival of Hida is the only time when Crab samurai may consume the flesh of their totem animal.
Once the banquet has concluded and the enshrined spirit is presumably in a good mood, the shugenja petitions the spirit for its favor throughout the year. Good harvests, kind weather, and protection from plagues are common entreaties, as is the long life of the Emperor. Then, the final ceremonies are conducted and the spirit is sent on its way, returning to the shrine or from wherever it came.
While most major festivals follow this pattern, regional and minor festivals sometimes break from it, as do festivals of unusual origin. For instance, the Festival of the Moon’s Wrath, which is celebrated during the first week of the Winter Court, features no entreaty to the honored spirit Onnotangu, nor any performances or merrymaking. Instead, businesses close, and courtiers refrain from all speech and song for one cycle of night and day, silencing the earth in honor of Lord Moon. Any who break this silence will suffer the god’s wrath. Thus, some festivals are somber occasions rather than joyous ones.
Bon Festival
Held on the last day of the Month of the Dog, the Bon Festival honors the dead and appeases wandering spirits. It is the greatest ancestral festival, an occasion on which Rokugani recall their ancestors’ greatest deeds. Yomi unites with Ningen-dō on this day, permitting blessed ancestors to visit and participate in the festivities. Families leave offerings for their departed loved ones, and a regional dance known as the bon odori is performed in their honor.
At the festival’s end, attendees release floating paper lanterns along the rivers and streams, each lantern containing the name of one who died during that year. It is hoped that these lanterns will reach the sea, so that those lost souls who cannot cross the Bridge of Lights can instead follow the lights to the next world.
Cherry Blossom Festival
Among the most popular festivals is the one marking the start of the flower-viewing season (hanami), colloquially known as Cherry Blossom Festival. Local traditions surrounding this festival vary, as does the day on which it is observed each year. It honors Kan’o and Nagameru, the twin Fortunes of sakura trees. Special care is made to appeal to Nagameru, who is fickle and known to ruin the event with spring storms. Nagameru’s name means “to gaze upon,” but spelled differently, it also means “it rains a long time.”
Cherry-blossom viewing is one of this festival’s primary activities, as are picnics beneath the boughs. Festival attendees leave sake and poetry offerings to the oldest trees, especially those where the spirits called kodama may live. Priests divine the upcoming planting dates through the scattering of the pink blossoms, and evening flower viewing can last well into the night.
Shouting Day
Held on the fourth day of Month of the Tiger, Shouting Day is a festival honoring the Fortune of Fire and Thunder, Osano-wo. But instead of making entreaties and offering entertainments, participants stand on a designated stage and shout complaints at the top of their lungs. Anything is fair game, and however scandalous, it is expected to be immediately forgotten once spoken. Thus, peasants gripe about their lords, farmers and fisherfolk about poor harvests and weather, married folk about their spouses, children about their parents, and on occasion, the devout about the Fortunes. These complaints amuse Osano-wo and provide an outlet for the year’s accumulated stress.
This festival is not observed by most nobility, as shouting gripes is beneath the dignity of samurai. However, some Minor Clans do observe the festival, and it is not unheard of for samurai to disguise themselves in order to participate.
Gempuku
Samurai children enroll in their chosen school somewhere between the ages of eight and ten, spending the next several years in the dōjō learning the skills they need to serve their clan. When they have mastered the first technique of their school, typically between the ages of fourteen and eighteen, their full-time education is considered complete, and they begin their adult service to their family and clan. This moment is celebrated in a coming-of-age ceremony known as gempuku
The gempuku ceremony is a crucial moment in the life of a samurai: the moment when they take up the true duty of a samurai and assume the full burden of upholding their ancestral name. As a result, every family and clan has elaborate cus-toms and traditions associated with gempuku, often quite rigorous and unique ones. However, there are three elements that all gempuku cere-monies share in common:
- The Challenge: Every gempuku ceremony incorporates some sort of test or challenge in which the student must display mastery of their training and a proper dedication to the ideals of their family and clan. The degree of difficulty involved varies widely, and in some cases can be extremely harsh or outright dangerous. For example, the Hida family of the Crab requires its students to go alone into the Shadowlands and return with the severed head of a Tainted creature. However, more commonly, the challenge is a display of prowess in the skills of the school, such as demonstrating the school kata, or a display of the student’s education, such as a recita-tion of the names of their ancestors.
- The Naming Ceremony: Once the challenge is successfully completed, the young samurai undergoes a ceremony in which they choose their adult name. It can be the same as their childhood name if they wish, but many samurai prefer to pick a new name that shows their intentions as adults. The student swears oaths of fealty to their family and clan. A high-ranking samurai from their family or clan receives the oaths on behalf of the clan champion; the higher this person’s rank, the more honor is done to the student (and the more will be expected of them as adults).
- The Daishō: At the conclusion of the cer-emony, the now-adult samurai receives a daishō. This may be a new pair of swords forged for the event, or it may be an ancestral set passed on from a family member. Either way, the bestowing of these swords, which represent the samurai’s soul and hon-or, mark the final transition into adulthood and full membership in the samurai caste. It should be noted that even courtiers, artisans, and shugenja receive a daishō at their gempuku, although they generally leave their katana on a display stand in a place of honor at their home rather than carrying it about as a bushi does
The Setsuban Festival
Complementing the Setsubun Festival of spring, the annual Setsuban Festival celebrates the change from summer to autumn. Summer is war season in the Empire, and it is imperative that those evils created in summer do not follow and taint the crop before the upcoming harvest. Across the Empire, shrines symbolically summon “demons” as the focus of all the evil and ill that occurred during the year. These demons are “slain” by the priests, ensuring summer’s evils die with them. Of course, the demons are just priests in costume, and their defeat mere pageantry that is nonetheless vital to the autumn harvest
The most elaborate Setsuban Festival, held at the Shrine of the Ki-Rin, is home to one of the greatest displays of kitō in Rokugan. At this event, shugenja from across the lands gather to compete in a grand tournament. Each participant antes a treasured artifact or a scroll of sacred teachings from their dōjō, monastery, temple, or library. The shugenja compete against one another in a “battle” of invocations, a display of power to frighten any summer demons who witness it. The winner receives all of the anted scrolls and artifacts, along with the acclaim and respect of their peers. Because losing a scroll is a shame one can never live down, typical competitors are either confident, foolish, or desperate.
One Thousand Festivals
In addition to celebrating major festivals, every village and town boasts its own unique festivals that are observed nowhere else, honoring local spirits or something the people find vital to their way of life. Crossroads Village is the site of the Barefoot Festival, which honors Koshin, the Fortune of Roads. Coastal villages celebrate the Suijin Festival honoring the Fortune of the Sea. And everyone knows that Friendly Traveler Village celebrates a sake festival each year!
The families of the Great Clans also have unique festivals venerating their shared ancestors or important moments in their history. For instance, the Festival of Hida, celebrated only by the Crab on the third day of the Month of the Boar, honors their clan founder with the largest bragging competition in the Empire.