Honden

In Shinto shrine architecture, the , also called , or sometimes as in Ise Shrine's case, is the most sacred building at a Shinto shrine, intended purely for the use of the enshrined ''kami'', usually symbolized by a mirror or sometimes by a statue.JAANUS The building is normally in the rear of the shrine and closed to the general public. In front of it usually stands the '' haiden'', or oratory. The ''haiden'' is often connected to the ''honden'' by a '' heiden'', or hall of offerings.

Physically, the ''honden'' is the heart of the shrine complex, connected to the rest of the shrine but usually raised above it, and protected from public access by a fence called '' tamagaki''. It usually is relatively small and with a gabled roof. Its doors are usually kept closed, except at religious festivals. Shinto priests themselves enter only to perform rituals. The rite of opening those doors is itself an important part of the shrine's life.Mori Mizue Inside the ''honden'' is kept the , literally, "the sacred body of the kami". The ''go-shintai'' is actually not divine, but just a temporary repository of the enshrined ''kami''.

Important as it is, the ''honden'' may sometimes be completely absent, as for example when the shrine stands on a sacred mountain to which it is dedicated, or when there are nearby '' himorogi'' (enclosure) or other '' yorishiro'' (substitute object) that serve as a more direct bond to a ''kami''. Ōmiwa Shrine in Nara, for example, contains no sacred images or objects because it is believed to serve the mountain on which it stands ( Mount Miwa).Se
Ōmiwa Shrine site
/ref>Tamura, page 21 For the same reason, it has a , but no ''honden''. In this sense, it is a model of what the first Shinto shrines were like.

Another important shrine without a ''honden'' is Suwa Taisha, head of the Suwa shrine network.

The ''honden's'' structure determines the shrine's architectural style. Many exist, but three ('' taisha-zukuri'', '' shinmei-zukuri'' and '' sumiyoshi-zukuri'') are of particular importance because they are the only ones believed to predate the arrival of Buddhism, and have therefore a special architectural and historical significance. They are exemplified respectively by the ''honden'' at Izumo Taisha, Nishina Shinmei Shrine and Sumiyoshi Taisha. German architect Bruno Taut compared the importance of Ise Shrine's ''honden'' to that of Greece's Parthenon. For details, see the article Shinto architecture.

See also

* Main Hall ''(Hondō)'' of a temple for the similar concept in Japanese Buddhism
* Glossary of Shinto for an explanation of terms concerning Shinto, Shinto art, and Shinto shrine architecture
* Holy of Holies in Judeo-Christian traditions

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{{Shinto shrine

Shinto architecture