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The Institution and facilities of the Shrine.

The shrine is a religious institution established to the deities, and a place open for public worship. The symbol used to show shrines on a map is a replica of a 'Torii' (a kind of gate), the thing people first see upon approaching a shrine. This is located at the entrance and marks the point where the grounds of the sacred land begin. There are many forms of 'gate', Shinmei-torii, Myojin-torii, Hachiman-torii, Kashima-torii, Sanno-torii, Ryobu-torii and Miwa-torii. These shapes varied at different times but the basic form can be found in the Shinmei-torii and Myojin-torii. After passing through the torii and entering the precincts of the shrine one finds such facilities as the "Temizuya" (hand-washing place), "Koma-inu" (Pair of guardian dogs placed on each side of the entrance or steps leading up the the main building), "Haiden" (prayer hall), "Heiden" (middle hall) and "Honden" (main hall). The purpose of each of these will be explained below.

Temizuya.

On entering the precincts and before going on to pray it is necessary to purify the body. This is done by washing the hands and mouth in a ceremony called "temizu no gi". It is carried out in the "Temizuya".

Haiden.

After they have washed their hands people clap their hands in front of the prayer hall and pray to the deities. They may sometimes enter the prayer hall to pray. The building used for this is called the Haiden. The Haiden is also used for various ceremonies.

Saisen.

Saisen means alms. An alms or offertory box is placed in front of the Haiden and is called a "saisen-bako".

Honden.

In this builing, which is called the Main Hall, is enshrined the sacred "Goshintai" (Divine Presence or medium). Among all the buildings found in modern shrines this is the one that appeared first. There are two styles of Honden, the "Hirairi" style and the "Tsumairi" style. A representative example of the first can be seen in the Goseiden of the Grand Shrine at Ise, which is called "Shinmei-zukuri", and a representative example of the latter can be seen in the main hall of the Izumo Taisha (Grand Shrine of Izumo), which is called "Taisha-zukuri". Besides these styles there are also "Nagare-zukuri", "Hachiman-zukuri" and "Hiyoshi-zukuri", which belong to the Hirairi style, and "Oshima-zukuri", "Sumiyoshi-zukuri" and "Kasuga-zukuri", which belong to the Tsumairi style. There are also special styles of the Main Hall called "Gion-zukuri", "Kibitsu-zukuri" and "Gongen- zukuri". But there are shrines which have no main hall such as the Omiwa Shrine of Nara Prefecture, the Suwa Taisha Kamiyashiro Hongo of Nagano Prefecture, and the Kanasan Shrine of Saitama Prefecture.

Heiden.

The building in front of the Main Hall is called the "Heiden" and is the place were the offerings to the deities are placed. If the the Main Hall and Prayer Hall are connected by the Heiden this is called "Gongen-zukuri", and this style can be seen in many shrines built after the beginning of the Edo Period. Besides these buildings we have also "Kagura-den" (where classical court style dancing and music is performed), "Shinsen-den" (where food for the deities is prepared and cooked), the "Homotsu-den" (Treasure hall, where the shrine's treasures are stored), the "Ema-den" (place where painted wooden 'prayer' pallets are hung), and the "Shamusho" or office for the general administration of the shrine. Each building has a function either for festivals or for worshipping, but they are not all absolutely necessary for the shrine.

Koma Inu (the pair of guard dogs situated on each side of the entrance to the shrine).

The original form of the Koma-inu is said to be found in Egypt and Iran, the name "Koma-inu" was given them because they were introduced into Japan from Korai in Korea. In Japan they were first used as "omoshi" (paper-weights), but gradually came to be used as decorations or at shrines as charms to ward off evil. Koma-inu are usually to be found in pairs, sometimes one has a horn, sometimes both and sometimes neither. In the same way one finds them with both their mouths open or shut, or with one in each state.