New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1894-12-28
JAPANESE RELIGION.
MIR. LOWELL on SOME MIRACLES OF
SHINTOISM.


,ermost Asia are totally devoid of personality
and the sense Of individuality characteristic OF
the Occident. He has now diluted and to that ex-
tent injured his hypothesis by ALTERATION in
which Far East, femininty and France figure
as explanatory Of each other. He might have
left the French out. Their rivalry with the
Anglo-Saxons would never be attributed by the
average European or American mind to a lack
among them of individuality. His argument as
- woman is plausible. He shows how i'm
possible 1t would be for man in the West to
conceive himself az taking another name nj
marriage and merging his identity in that Of
some other person; and then he dwells upon the
readiness with which the woman does this in
Europe and America, where personality Is 50
potent a fact in civilization. He shows how the
wife willingly loses herself in the life and in
dividualty Of her husband, how his likes
become her likes and his dislkes her dishies'
and then he compares this seli-enacement on hes
part to the unconscious lack of self-asseruon on
the part of the Oriental While in the one case,
If Mr. Lowells opinion is the correct one, the
obliteration Of self is deliberate and Intentional
in the other the self is never asserted, because
Its existence is unknown. The reader VIII Wohoer
how the author gets around TO this theory by
a study of phenomena when supericiahy re-
semble those of Western spirtualism. But the
glimpse of what he calls Occult Japan was OBJ
tanned by accident. Yet he must have had some
inkling of what he was to or he would not
have had the foresight to put himself in the way
of the phenomena. There is a certain mountain
in the heart of Japan, called Ontake or the
Honorable Peak which enjoys an enviaoe ds-
tincton among all the high places OF the lsland
Empre 1t was once or rather many times III
different ages. an active volcano; for upon us
summit are the crumbling walls of eight success
siye craters piled in parapet up INTO 'he shy
There is even yet a sign or two OF hres WIN"
that may again break forth. But these Volcano
characteristics are not the immediate cause %
the mountains present fame. This Is OF IT,
npious character 1t is said that on other peaks
and in other holy places OF Japan devotee may
become possessed by a deity with an effort ou' Oh
Ontake the god descends willingly upon the
votary and takes possession OF MN ana SpeaN'
with his voice.
Mr. Lowell saws that one god who had taken
nossession Of a mortal so as TO 1lnd an h'su"-
ment and a voice thanked him FOR MS WISH ~
Ontake and congratulated him on reachihs 'ne
ton NJ the peak. a feat supposed by devoui
Japanese to be impossible TO a foreigner Inc
inference from this is fair that he must nave
Lroun beforehand the difficulties of his task.
and must have anticipated the peculiarlties oil
the sights which he to see NeVertheiess'
no was surprised by some things of when ne
WAS An eyewitness. He made the ascent Vi ''o
peak with friend. and met with no serious oo-
stacle either natural or supernatural p"' 40
the two friends neared :he top ana hal'eu ioi
rest in a tea -house built directly over 'ie P"''
their attention was attracted TO three !ou"s
men in the robes of religious piisri"is' WIZ
stalked through the place and went on uP""'"
,,.,,h tho energy ard single-mindedness OF that
ho.t "
device to a fate too familiar for recital III inns
Mace. Mr. Lowell and his friend soon ai'er""iu
found the pilgrims engaged in strange pc 1oi'"
rco One of the trio. seated on Dehch WIS
,r;stino his fingers and going through o'hei
contortions to the accompaniment oil players
which he ntoned while another oil 'he PART!
sat. holding between his hands "ahu '''""e'
with "gohei." those strips OF paper cut %s~"s
fashion resembling a streak OF hghlmhs H''o
nearly than anything else in nature VIII" 'ie
a universal feature of religion IN Japan Inc
man with the wand gradually fell INTO "H'iOe'
.rd then in a voice different from that OF ms
waking moments answered in the name OIL some
god whatever questions were put 10 MN ~ -
friopd The trance appeared 10 be caldlep'c'
and II required considerable effort to BRING 'he
eleener around to his natural CONDITION. In''
performance was repeated many uHes .! ''
nilerms during the ascent, on the op "a '"e
peak and again the return 10 'he pam
But they changed places sometimes one eo'"e
info the trance and sometimes another. Mean
while from the time they left the bottom Oh inc
mountain until they descended again. u"@' 10
from early morning one day TO ia'e ai'ei"'o''
of the next day, they ate nothing anu ''"""
only water .,.
Subsequently Mr.. Lowell had an opportunity
% witness many similar performances under dil-
rorent circumstances. He found that the disposi-
tion to 90 on a pilgrimage was universal i"
I,nan and that the actual number or phgi'mS
wac limited only by the chronic impecuhiosi'y "
the population. The levity Of the people hidue
pilgrimage a sort OF wandering picnic Out 'heie
was always religious fervor enough 10 sahc''S
the Journey and there were ceremonies ""iO"
showed the devotion Of the people. In oioef ~
proyide means for these annual movements Peo
n,e formed clubs and paid (often very reluctantly
fixed dues, which were assigned by io'' the VIII
nars Thus being able to defray their expenses. In
those clubs there grew up certain esoteric uao'
tons which affected the mythoiogic preferences
20 tho n,embers and even their manner or gong
;,,o frances and revealing the Will OF their CHOSEN
deities AS an observer he used approved me'h
DDS of testing the genuineness OF frances W
sticking pins into the presumably UNCONSCIOUS
human creature who had. in the Japanese way Vi
thinking become for the moment god anu lie
found cases of fraud not difhcuit 10 oe'ec'' """'
the so-called divine possession actua"s mean.
was less easy to determine. In inc "rs' P'"'., "
GO. dieicult IN ascertain with certainty to which
y, ,ha religions Of the country the doctrine ana
,ractice of possession originally belonged Among
those who practised it most persistenty were me
adherents Of Ryobu. This word means 'po'h'
and it's use as a name implied a combination Oh
tho ancient nature and ancestor worship caieo
shlnto. and the foreign creed OF Buddhism I'M
,orted from China. But the Ryobuis's ou'rah
their rivals They and they only practised the