Eddies in the Stream: Networked Flows of Spiritual Commodities in Global Shinto

Abstract

Studies have examined the circulation of material religious objects such as amulets (omamori), talismans (ofuda), and other lucky charms within Japan from a variety of perspectives. Previous scholarship has focused on the creation, consecration, distribution, and disposal of these items within a closed circuit delimited by the borders of Japan. In actuality, alternate currents of globalization carry Shinto religious practice in a multitude of directions and across national borders through the delicate orchestration of the movement of bodies, technology, ideas, money, media, and objects. Shrines in the United States and Canada play a crucial role as mediators of this movement, highlighting the importance of looking beyond the borders of Japan and mainstream patterns of circulation to see a much broader and more complex whole. This article expands our view of Shinto materiality by examining the transnational circulation of sacred items within global Shinto networks. Based on a multisited digital ethnographic research within transnational Shinto communities, I focus on how negotiations of religious objectscapes—in particular, the flow of talismans needed to connect with the divine through one’s domestic altar—shape relationships between Shinto shrines, their deities, practitioners, and other intermediaries. I argue that obstructions, interruptions, and diversions in the circulation of these sacred materials, rather than their free and continuous flow, create eddies in circulation, necessitating digital Shinto networks to manage them.