Ie - The Family System
The traditional household system that connects living members with ancestors.
The ie is the traditional Japanese household that extends through generations, connecting the living with ancestors and future descendants. Each generation serves as custodians of this continuous line, responsible for maintaining traditions and ancestral veneration.
We are but a link in the chain of ie, receiving from ancestors, transmitting to descendants.
The ie system structured Japanese society and ancestor veneration for centuries.
Social traditions
Written about in
- What Shinto says about family and ancestors
The ie is the household understood as a line rather than as the people currently in it. Each generation holds it briefly, receiving from those behind and passing on to those ahead.