Shinto: "The Peach Orchard"

Kurosawa'a film "Dreams" depicts several dreams he has had throughout his lifetime. The segment I chose to watch, "The Peach Orchard," begins with a young boy serving his sister and four friends, yet the boy insists there is a young girl missing. At the start of the film there is a shrine of dolls present in the room, however this does not relate to Shinto because there are statues present. The little boy once again spots the missing girl, but only he can see her. He follows her out to his family's peach orchard, where the little girl disappears and what seems to be life-sized versions of the dolls appear. The large group informs the young boy that they will no longer be visiting his house because his family cut down the peach trees and the boy begins to cry. After much disbelief from the "dolls," they quickly realize the boy truly is upset and allow him to see the orchard in full bloom one last time.

The life-sized dolls represent the spirits of the peach trees because these particular dolls are used in celebration of harvest. The communication of the peach trees through the depiction of dolls represents the Shinto belief that matter and spirit are inseparable. Harmonious relationships in nature are also important to Shinto belief. Since the family cut down the peach trees and therefore interfered with harmony, they were punished by the threat of the trees never returning again. The most obvious relation to Shinto in this segment was the idea of the orchard representing Kami. As recognized by Shinto believers, Kami is what is powerful and amazing in nature. From the little boy's perspective, the orchard was Kami.