Agama Ryukyu

Agama Ryukyu, Ryukyu Shinto (琉球神道), Nirai Kanai Shinkou (ニライカナイ信仰), atau Utaki Shinkou (御嶽信仰) merupakan sistem kepercayaan masyarakat asli Kepulauan Ryukyu. Walaupun legenda dan tradisi tertentu yang berbeza dari tempat ke tempat dan pulau ke pulau, agama Ryukyu secara umumnya bercirikan penyembahan nenek moyang (lebih tepat memberi :penghormatan kepada nenek moyang") dan menghormati hubungan antara yang hidup, mati, dewa dan semangat alam semula jadi. Sebahagian daripada kepercayaannya, seperti yang berkaitan dengan semangat genius loci dan makhluk lain yang diklasifikasikan antara dewa-dewa dan manusia, menandakan akar animistik purba, seperti kebimbangannya terhadap , atau intipati hidup.

Lama kelamaan, agama Ryukyu telah dipengaruhi dengan agama China (Taoisme, Konfusianisme, and kepercayaan rakyat), Buddhisme dan Shinto. Salah satu kepercayaan kuno ialah kepercayaan , keunggulan semangat wanita yang datang dari Amamikyu, yang membenarkan pembinaan sistem noro.

Rujukan

Bacaan tambahan
 Edward E. Bollinger. The Shaman of Okinawa vs. the Gospel. Meynard Publishing Ltd.:  Tokyo, Japan, 2000.   C0039.
 George H. Kerr. Okinawa: the History of an Island People. Tuttle Publishing:  Boston, MA, U.S., 2000. 
 Masaharu Matayoshi & Joyce Trafton. Ancestors Worship:  Okinawa's Indigenous Belief System.  Printed at University of Toronto Press, Inc.: Toronto, Canada, 2000.  . A large portion of the content of this page was drawn from this work.
 Masaaki Nagata, trans. by Katsue Hyatt. Okinawan Folk Stories. A collection of Uchinanchu folk tales.
 Manabu Ooshiro, trans. by Marie Yamazato. Eisaa. Yui Publishing Co. for Okinawa Department of Culture and Environment, Cultural and International Affairs Bureau, Culture Promotion Division, Naha City, 1998. 
 trans. by Sally Ooshiro. Irōsetsuden (). Presented as thesis towards completion of M.A., University of Hawaii, 1964. Along with the Omoro Sōshi, it is one of the collections of Ryukyu history and legend. Compiled in the 17th century by Shuri scholars.
 Susan Sered. Women of the Sacred Groves: Divine Priestesses of Okinawa. New York: Oxford University Press, 1999.  .

Bibliografi terpilih
Legends of Okinawa by Sesoku Chizue.  First publication, Okinawa, 1969.  Hard-to-find collection of legends and folk tales.
The Ghosts of Okinawa by Jayne Hitchcock.  MHS Printing, April, 2000.  .  A short collection of ghost stories from around Okinawa.  More information available at the author's website.
Ouwehand, C. (1985). Hateruma: socio-religious aspects of a South-Ryukyuan island culture. Leiden: E.J. Brill.

Pautan luar
 琉球大学附属図書館University of the Ryukyus Library Databases of many online old materials about the Ryukyuan Culture, such as old Chinese and Japanese texts in the 伊波普猷文庫 ("Iha Fuyū text database")
沖縄の歴史情報(ORJ) Many old texts about Ryukyu, some are old Ryukyuan texts.
Okinawa Myths, Festival, and Priestess information.

Ryukyu