The , also known as the Department of Shinto Affairs, Department of Rites, Department of Worship, as well as Council of Divinities, was a Japanese Imperial bureaucracy established in the 8th century, as part of the reforms. It was first established under the Taihà  Code which also established the . However, the and the Daijà Â-kan made their first appearance in the Asuka Kiyomihara Code.
While the Daijà Â-kan handled secular administrative affairs of the country, the oversaw matters related to Shintà Â, particularly of kami worship. The general functions of the included overseeing kami-related affairs at court, managing provincial shrines, performing rites for the , as well as coordinating the provinces' ritual practices with those in the capital based on a code called , which translates to "Code of Celestial and Terrestrial Deities" or "Code of Heavenly and Earthly Gods".
While the department existed for almost a millennium, there are periods of time in Japanese ancient and medieval history where the was effectively nonexistent such as when the physical establishment of the department was burned down during the à Ânin War (1467-1477). During the Meiji period, the was briefly reinstated in 1868 and dissolved in 1871, succeeded by the and the Ministry of Religion (æÂÂé¨çÂÂ, kyà Âbushà Â).
The term is composed of the Chinese characters , "council" or "department," and , which are an abbreviated form of , "celestial and terrestrial deities." The term , also known as amatsukami which translates to "celestial deities" or "heavenly gods" encompasses all kami gods in Shintà  that reside in Takamagahara or the "High Plains of Heaven," from whom the Japanese imperial line claims descendance. The term , also known as kunitsukami, translates to "terrestrial deities" or "earthly gods" and encompasses all kami gods in Shinto that reside in or have appeared on the earth. Colloquially, the term jingi can also be used to refer to the rituals performed to the heavenly and earthly gods.
Therefore, there are several ways to translate the term jingi-kan in English:
This Shintà  administrative hierarchy was an intentional mirror of its Chinese counterpart, the Ministry of Rites (禮é¨). The Jingi-kan was charged with oversight of Shintà  clergy and rituals for the whole country.
The Jingi-kan was staffed by four levels of managers, as seen below:
In its early days, the had four main functions:
The was responsible for carrying out thirteen rites as written in the jingiryà Â. The rites are laid out in articles 2 through 9, as well as article 18. Those rituals are:
From the 10th century to the 15th, the Shirakawa-hakuà  family held this position continuously.
In feudal Japan, the Jingi-kan became the final surviving building of the Heian Palace. During the Jà Âkyà « War in 1221, most of the palace was evacuated and fell into disrepair; the Jingi-kan alone remained in operation. A 1624 memoir by a Jingi-haku reports that the Jingi-kan was still being used as late as 1585 and was demolished during renovations. In 1626, a temporary building was constructed to perform additional ceremonies.
On 3 March 1868, Emperor Meiji announced that the new Meiji government would restore direct imperial rule (çÂÂæ¿復å¤, à Âsei fukko) and unity of rites and government (ç¥Âæ¿ä¸Âè´, saisei itchi). The department was reinstated in 1868 at the beginning of the Meiji period as a provisional step to achieve saisei itchi.
In 1870, the Meiji administration attempted to create a new national religion under the term , primarily to keep Christianity from gaining popularity and influence in the Japanese society and to re-educate the population about the significance of the imperial rule. Consequentially, in addition to overseeing Shintà  affairs, the began to produce propaganda supporting the empire.
The was demoted to the Ministry of Divinities, lasting from 1871 to 1872, as part of the saisei itchi campaign, bringing the to an end.
The goals of the Great Teaching campaign were deemed too ambiguous to be formed into practice, making it difficult for the Jingi-shà  to provide theoretical and spiritual content to be spread among the public. The Jingi-shà  also lacked staff to oversee their two major functions, Shintà  affairs and propaganda. Because of this, the Jingi-shà  was dissolved and the Meiji administration established Ministry of Religion (æÂÂé¨çÂÂ, kyà Âbushà Â), also known as the Ministry of Doctrine.