Tokyo is not famous for tradition or antiquity. Flattened first by the Great Kanto Earthquake of 1923 and again by World War II firebombs, it is the sleek bottomless bottle into which young Japanese provincials have poured themselves for a century and a half. In this thoroughly modern metropolis they can find new lives, jobs, convenience and endless entertainment. Meanwhile domestic and international tourists swarm around its elegant cousin Kyoto, queuing for traditional culture, and the Japanese countryside ages and empties. Those who visitTokyo from overseas are generally looking for the futuristic neon city of robot restaurants and the Shibuya Scramble Crossing. But behind the skyscrapers and between the karaoke bars and pachinko parlours we can still find the homes of Japan’s old gods.
The Japanese are known for their lack of religious belief. A survey conducted by the national broadcaster NHK in 2008 found that 49% of those interviewed did “not follow any religion”. More recently, I read a short interview with a young Japanese student You wouldn’t expect to hear irreligiosity tied to national identity in most countries, barring those under communist regimes. Those ethnic Japanese who do identify as religious are either part of the country’s tiny but devout Christian minority or adherents of Buddhism, which reached Japan in the 6th century.
