I apologize for the long absence, I've been busy traveling the country!When I first came to Japan, I was really excited about seeing shrines, because I don't believe that there are very many in the U.S., at least not that I know of. After a while, though, I had visited so many shrines that I couldn't keep them all straight, and my interest began to wane. However, after learning this interesting information this past week, my interest has been renewed!
The toori is the big, stone gate that stands at the entranceway to a shrine. Some are made out of stone, but others are made out of wood and painted vermillion. That vermillion color is used to show the sacredness of the shrine area and the power of the Shinto gods. If you make a wish and place a stone on the toori gate, the wish is supposed to come true, which is why I've seen a lot of stones placed on top of toori gates this past week. However, the toori gates are sometimes very tall, so people who can't reach the toori gates will place rocks on stone lanterns lining the shrine area. Also, next to the toori gate are two stone dogs that look like lions. These are mythical dogs called komainu, and they are said to guard the shrine. These dogs exist outside shrines and other buildings in China, too. There is always one dog with its mouth open in the shape of an "ah" vowel and another with its mouth closed in the shape of an "mm" consonant. The "ah" vowel is the first letter of the Sanskrit alphabet, and the "mm" consonant is the last letter, symbolizing that the komainu guard the shrine from beginning to end.
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