Ryukyu Shinto ki

Written: 1605, Taichû (revised 1607)
Japanese: 琉球神道記 (Ryuukyuu shintou ki)

The Ryûkyû Shintô ki is an account of religion in the Ryûkyû Kingdom, completed in 1605 by the Japanese monk Taichû. Along with Taichû's Ryûkyû ôrai, also completed in 1605, it is one of the two first books in Japanese to describe Ryûkyû at length.

The text is divided into five chapters (kan), beginning with one on the four Buddhist realms. Chapter Two discusses India (Tenjiku), birthplace of Buddhism, and Chapter Three traces the history of China (Shittan) by imperial reign, up through the Ming Dynasty. The fourth chapter describes the main objects of worship (honzon) of Ryûkyû's temples, identifying for each Ryukyuan manifestation (suijaku) the "true" deity (honji) being manifested.^[1] The final chapter then discusses beliefs and worship in Ryûkyû, including summaries of the origin stories (engi) of Ryûkyû's major Shinto shrines.

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References

Yokoyama Manabu 横山学, Ryûkyû koku shisetsu torai no kenkyû 琉球国使節渡来の研究, Tokyo: Yoshikawa kôbunkan (1987), 52.

↑ See honji suijaku.

[1] See honji suijaku.

[1]