The Meiji government during the 1880's created both an .
institutional and constitution structure that allowed Japan in the.
coming decades to be a stabile and industrializing country. Two major .
policies and strategies that reinforced stability and power.
Japan is a society whose culture is steeped in the traditions and symbols of the past: Mt. Fuji, .
the tea ceremony, and .
the sacred objects of nature revered in Shintoism. Two of the most important traditions and symbols in .
Japan; the Emperor .
and Confucianism have endured through Shogunates, restorations of imperial rule, and up to present day. .
The leaders of the .
Meiji Restoration used these traditions to gain control over Japan and further their goals of .
modernization. The Meiji leaders .
used the symbolism of the Emperor to add legitimacy to their government, by claiming that they were .
ruling under the .
"Imperial Will." They also used Confucianism to maintain order and force the Japanese people to passively .
accept their rule. .
Japanese rulers historically have used the symbolism of the Imperial Institution to justify .
their rule. The symbolism of .
the Japanese Emperor is very powerful and is wrapped up in a mix of religion (Shintoism) and myths. .
According to Shintoism .
the current Emperor is the direct descendent of the Sun Goddess who formed the islands of Japan out of .
the Ocean in .
ancient times.Footnote1 According to these myths the Japanese Emperor unlike a King is a living .
descendent of the Gods .
and even today he is thought of as the High Priest of Shinto. Despite the powerful myths surrounding .
Japan's imperial .
institution the Emperor has enjoyed only figure head status from 1176 on. At some points during this time .
the Emperor was .
reduced to selling calligraphy on the streets of Kyoto to support the imperial household, but usually the .
Emperor received .
money based on the kindness of the Shogunate.Footnote2 But despite this obvious power imbalance even the .
