Issues: Museums and Memorials
Yasukuni Shrine
Yasukuni Shrine is a Shinto
shrine. Shintoism is Japan’s indigenous religion, predating the arrival of
Buddhism in the 5th century. Its belief structure appears close to
what the West would call paganism, with worship of the moon, rivers, trees,
ancient heroes, and a Sun Goddess. When Buddhism arrived, it replaced Shintoism
in many regards but the two came to coexist together in Japan until the Meiji
Restoration in 1868 when the Emperor was restored to his sacerdotal, living-god
position as the direct descendent of the Sun Goddess and Shinto became the state
religion. It was at this time that many shrines worshiping various deities were
rearranged under a state-ordained hierarchy and other new shrines were created
to promote the idea of loyalty to the Emperor. Tokyo Shokonsha (Tokyo
Spirit-Inviting Shrine) was the largest one of these shrines, established in
1869 incorporating the idea that if a Japanese subject died in the service of
the Emperor, his spirit would be enshrined within its walls. It was renamed
Yasukuni Jinja (the Shrine to Ease the Nation) in 1879. While the original
shrine had honored close to 4,000 souls who had died fighting for the Emperor
against the Shogun and other domestic rebels during the tumultuous years of the
Meiji Restoration, the years that followed proved to be just as bloody as
peasant conscripts fought for the Emperor against samurai rebels. After
domestic peace was secured, Japan became embattled in wars with China and
Russia. Over the years, Yasukuni’s role changed so that dying for the Emperor
synonymously meant dying for Japan. This is a role that it would keep until the
end of WWII. During the war, the shrine was run by the army and used for
spiritual mobilization of the Japanese. At the end of the war, Douglas
MacArthur disestablished state Shinto’s role, thereby making Yasukuni a purely
private religious organization.
Eventually, more than 2 million souls have been
enshrined at Yasukuni, which for Shintoism means deification. Literally,
enshrinement consists of reading the name of the person who is to be enshrined.
Today, this means not just 14 Class-A war criminals that are the usual focus of
attention (described below), but also civilians, Christians, Buddhists, Koreans,
and Taiwanese. As a whole, the names enshrined at Yasukuni exclude only the
Emperor’s enemies, both domestic and foreign.
What has become a great source of ire for some
neighboring countries, particularly China and
South Korea, is the fact that in 1978 former wartime prime minister Hideki Tojo
and 13 other Class-A war criminals were enshrined at Yasukuni. This
enshrinement and the decision that led to it remain unclear. However, what is
clear is that prior to this date, Japanese premiers visited the shrine without
protest from its neighbors. But on August 15, 1985 Prime Minister Yasuhiro
Nakasone paid the first official visit by an incumbent premier since WWII. The
visit sparked student protests in China and South Korea as it was seen as a
celebration of Japan's wartime past and convicted Class-A war criminals. It was not until
August 15, 2001 that another sitting prime minister, this time Junichiro
Koizumi, paid an official visit to Yasukuni, causing the same reaction in China
and South Korea. Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto
also visited Yasukuni when he was premier, but he avoided the politically
sensitive date of August 15 and instead visited on his birthday, July 29.
While the visits by Japanese premiers (as well as cabinet ministers and other sitting- politicians) still cause controversy and protests in neighboring countries, efforts are taken to avoid domestic opposition that might arise due to the issue of separation of state and religion. The visits are carefully scripted so as to not violate this constitutional separation. Instead of bowing and clapping hands, as is the Shinto custom, the prime minister bows only once, does not clap hands, and is not purified by the priests. Additionally, instead of making a votive offering at the shrine’s altar, a gift of flowers is presented.
