| Fukko-Shinto |
"Return to antiquity' Shinto. A name, more or less synonymous with given to the academic school of Japanese philology which developed during the mid- Tokugawa period into the wider kokugaku movement. The name fukko reflects that of the Confucian fukko-gaku (or ko-gaku, ancient learning) movement of the Sung dynasty in China whose scholars looked back to the golden age of Confucius. Initially it sought an understanding of "Japanese" origins through the academic study of ancient Japanese texts. "Fukko" came to mean also restoration of imperial rule. Fukko Shinto drew inspiration from the works of four great scholars, Kada no Azumamaro, Kamo no Mabuchi, Motoori Norinaga and Hirata Atsutane. Modern Shinto embodies much of the outlook and assumptions of the fukko shinto and kokugaku movements of the 18th-19th centuries |
|
| Fuku o yobu jisha jiten |
'Dictionary of shrines and temples that summon good fortune'. A publication by the Kodansha company, and representative of numerous contemporary book, newspaper and magazine guides to the specialities of religious institutions. The dictionary is divided into categories such as educational success (gokaku) road safety (kotsu anzen) health, business prospects, fertility and so forth, listing shrines and temples to visit by region. Reflecting the near-100% literacy rate in Japan and the need for shrines to bring their specialities to the attention of potential visitors, most larger shrines also offer printed guides for those wishing to know more about the history, mythology and special characteristics of the site, as well as advertising in magazines, railway timetables and other appropriate media |
|
| Fuku-roku-ju |
One of the a Taoist god of popularity, his name means happiness-wealth-longevity. He is believed to have been a Chinese hermit of the Sung dynasty and is represented as a small elderly man with a long bald head. He is sometimes escorted by a crane, deer or tortoise and carries a book of sacred teachings tied to his staff, similar to |
|
| Fukuba, Bisei (or Yoshishizu) |
A disciple of Okuni Takamasa, and one of the most significant -period national learning (kokugaku) leaders. In his own fief of Tsuwano in Western Japan he carried out an early dissociation of kami from Buddhism (shinbutsu bunri) in 1867 and after the restoration became an important administrator of Shinto affairs in the which had been revived partly by his efforts. In the jingikan he opposed the "Hirata" faction who wished to restrict the jingikan's activities to the conduct of imperial rites, arguing instead for the promulgation of a common creed which would unite the people. He was the principal architect of the senpu undo (great promulgation campaign) of 1870-1884 and actively trained priests to preach official doctrines, proselytize as 'national evangelists" (kyodo-shoku) form networks of shrines based on jingu, conduct parishioner's funerals and carry out pastoral work. In 1897 his leading role in a badly mismanaged memorial ceremony in Tokyo for the last pre-Meiji emperor Komei contributed to public and government scepticism about the reliability of Shinto priests in public affairs |
|
| Full Gospel Assembly |
FGA |
|
| Fullness Of Life In Christ |
FLIC |
|
| Fully Reliant On God |
FROG |
|
| Fully Rely On God |
FROG |
|
| Fully Relying On God |
FROG |
|
| Fun Learning About God |
FLAG |
|
| Funa-kurabe |
Boat race contests, originally to divine the harvest, held among villages. They are common in Western Japan. There are notable examples at Iki, Tsushima and Sakurajima and at other places where belief in the water kami (suijin) is strong. At Nagasaki the funa-kurabe is part of the peiron festival |
|
| Funadama |
Boat-spirit. A female divinity who protects and helps mariners and fishermen. She is represented by symbols such as a woman's hair, dice, money and the five grains inserted into the mast of a boat |
|
| Funadama matsuri |
"Boat festival" held on August 15 at the Hodosan jinja, Saitama. It dates from the Tokugawa period when travellers by raft from Chichibu to Edo prayed for safe passage on the Arakawa river |
|
| Funakake |
Boat race contests, originally to divine the harvest, held among villages. They are common in Western Japan. There are notable examples at Iki, Tsushima and Sakurajima and at other places where belief in the water kami (suijin) is strong. At Nagasaki the funa-kurabe is part of the peiron festival |
|
| Fundamental Baptist Information Service |
FBIS |
|
| Fundoshi |
Traditional loincloth underwear for men, worn by festival participants. Another form of festival loincloth is the shimekomi |
|
| Furusato |
One's home village. In ordinary use a family's ancestral home. By extension (as in kokoro no furusato, spiritual homeland, homeland of the heart) furusato may refer to a state of spiritual or sentimental security, return or rejuvenation, and to religious centres such as the jingu |
|
| Furyu-mono |
Festival floats with puppets. The name literally means 'elegant things'. Those shown at the Hitachi furyu-mono festival in Ibaraki prefecture from May 3rd-5th, though unconnected with a shrine exemplify the ingenuity which goes into the construction of such floats, lesser versions of which are found in many shrine processions. The furyu-mono here are fifteen metres tall, with five tiers of puppet stages on the omote-yama (front side) and a further stage at the back (ushiro-yama) a 7-8 man orchestra and 25-26 puppeteers who lie on their backs while working the puppets to be concealed from the audience |
|
| Fushimi Inari taisha |
Located in Kyoto and said to have been founded in 711, Fushimi Inari is the mother shrine of thousands of branch Fushimi Inari It is dedicated to the kami of rice or business (i.e. Inari) who is identified at Fushimi and in many other shrines with the food kami Uga-or Uka-no-mitama-no-kami, a deity mentioned in the as a son of Susa-no-o and in the as a son of and Izanami, though Inari may also be represented as female. Inari is popularly identified with the messenger fox (o-kitsune-san) statues of whom can be seen at most Inari temples. The Inari-matsuri held at the shrine in April involves visits by the deity to various over 21 days. Fushimi Inari is one of the great shrines which these days attract enormous crowds at New Year for and the shrine is highly regarded throughout the year by business people, particularly those in the financial sector. Many companies send staff representatives to visit the shrine or they receive visits from shrine priests to company premises to pray for prosperity. So many firms have donated red to the shrine as votive offerings that the walkways within the shrine precincts are virtually torii-tunnels |
|
| Fuso-kyo |
One of the thirteen groups of sect Shinto (kyoha shinto) Fuso is a name for Japan. The original inspiration of Fuso-kyo is said to be Hasegawa, Kakugyo (1541-1646) a devotee of the religious ascent of Mt. Fuji but the person usually regarded as its founder lived three hundred years later. Shishino, Nakaba (1844-1884) began to attract followers devoted to climbing Mt. Fuji in 1875 and his group was recognised as an independent sect in 1882. Like the sect worships the deity of the mountain, in this case Sengen Daishin the deity of Mt. Fuji. The sect teaches that reverence for the kami and ancestors benefits both the devotee and the nation. The sect also claims Hasegawa as its founder |
|
