komainu
Sign in to saveAlso known as lion-dog
thumb|260px|A pair of komainu, the "a" on the right, the "um" on the left
Wikidata facts
- Part of
- Japanese mythology
- Country of origin
- Japan
- Location
- Shinto shrine
- Image
- TakaoKomaInu.jpg
Show 2 more facts
- name in kana
- こまいぬ
- Commons category
- Komainu
Sources (2)
via Wikidata · CC0
~6 min read
Encyclopedic overview
15 sectionsContents
- Symbolic meaning
- History
- Origins
- Heian period
- Edo period
- Parallels
- Foxes at Inari shrines
- Okinawan shīsā
- Gallery
- See also
- Explanatory notes
- References
- Citations
- General and cited references
- External links
thumb|260px|A pair of komainu, the "a" on the right, the "um" on the left
, often called lion-dogs in English, are statue pairs of lion-like creatures, which traditionally guard the entrance or gate of the shrine, or placed in front of or within the honden (inner sanctum) of Japanese Shinto shrines.
Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “komainu” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.