Roughly outlining the political and religious life of the ancient Japanese, we note that their first system of government was a rude sort of feudalism imposed by the conquerors and was synchronous with aboriginal fetichism, nature worship, ancestral sacrifices, sun-worship and possibly but not probably, a very rude sort of monotheism akin to the primitive Chinese cultus.[9] Almost contemporary with Buddhism, its introduction and missionary development, was the struggle for centralized imperialism borrowed from the Chinese and consolidated in the period from the seventh to the twelfth century.  During most of this time Shint[=o], or the primitive religion, was overshadowed while the Confucian ethics were taught.  From the twelfth to this nineteenth century feudalism in politics and Buddhism in religion prevailed, though Confucianism furnished the social laws or rules of daily conduct.  Since the epochal year of 1868, with imperialism reestablished and the feudal system abolished, Shint[=o] has had a visible revival, being kept alive by government patronage.  Buddhism, though politically disestablished, is still the popular religion with recent increase of life,[10] while Confucianism is decidedly losing force.  Christianity has begun its promising career.

The Amalgam of Religions.

Yet in the imperial and constitutional Japan of our day it is still true of probably at least thirty-eight millions of Japanese that their religion is not one, Shint[=o], Confucianism or Buddhism, but an amalgam of all three.  There is not in every-day life that sharp distinction between these religions which the native or foreign scholar makes, and which both history and philosophy demand shall be made for the student at least.  Using the technical language of Christian theologians, Shint[=o] furnishes theology, Confucianism anthropology and Buddhism soteriology.  The average Japanese learns about the gods and draws inspiration for his patriotism from Shint[=o], maxims for his ethical and social life from Confucius, and his hope of what he regards as salvation from Buddhism.  Or, as a native scholar, Nobuta Kishimoto,[11] expresses it,

In Japan these three different systems of religion and morality are not only living together on friendly terms with one another, but, in fact, they are blended together in the minds of the people, who draw necessary nourishment from all of these sources.  One and the same Japanese is both a Shint[=o]ist, a Confucianist, and a Buddhist.  He plays a triple part, so to speak ...  Our religion may be likened to a triangle....  Shint[=o]ism furnishes the object, Confucianism offers the rules of life, while Buddhism supplies the way of salvation; so you see we Japanese are eclectic in everything, even in religion.

These three religious systems as at present constituted, are “book religions.”  They rest, respectively, upon the Kojiki and other ancient Japanese literature and the modern commentators; upon the Chinese