Japan and the Legacy of the Samurai The last of seven films
Narrated by Julian Pettifer Pageboy to the Gods
A recent survey revealed that nearly 80 per cent of Japanese are devout Buddhists, but almost the same number profess to be followers of Shinto. People hedge their bets by following both religions ana Keep in their homes two altars - one for Shinto gods, the ' Kami and the other for the family dead. In seeking an understanding of Japan today and of the ' Japanese spirit ', it seems one always comes back to Shinto. In the words of anthropologist Fosco Maraini , ' The Japanese enjoy the mere fact of living to the hilt. They work, like a myriad of buzzing bees, with a dedication that can only stem from an undivided and terribly healthy soul ... The world is good; work is good; fruits are good; and even war is good, provided you win it. All this is entirely consonant with the Spirit of Shinto.'
Film cameramen
COLIN WALDECK. DAVID WIIITSON Research SUE HAYCOCK Film editor JEFF SHAW
Produced by MICHAEL MACINTYRE. Book (same title), £12.95 from booksellers