Honoring Female Ancestors at Kyoto’s White Temple

Catherine Pawasarat recounts her journey to the White Temple in Kyoto, Japan, where both Buddhist and Shinto deities are honored and female ancestors are recognized.
Ancestor worship dates to Japan’s earliest recorded history, tracing back to the nature-based folk religion that later evolved into Shintō, or “the way of the spirits.” Traditionally, ancestor worship in Asia is patrilineal, with eldest sons shouldering the responsibility of paying respects to their ancestors via the paternal, male line. Shintō practitioners prayed for a good afterlife for their family and tribe members, simultaneously hoping they might be helpful allies from realms beyond. Alongside this spiritual practice, a historical fear of potential havoc wreaked by unhappy or vengeful spirits has left Japanese culture with a lush endowment of ghost stories. 

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