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In Shinto shrine
A is a structure whose main purpose is to house ("enshrine") one or more ''kami'', the deities of the Shinto religion.
Overview
Structurally, a Shinto shrine typically comprises several buildings.
The ''honden''Also called (本殿, meanin ...
architecture, the is the hall of worship or oratory. It is generally placed in front of the shrine's main sanctuary (''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 s ...
'') and often built on a larger scale than the latter. The ''haiden'' is often connected to the ''honden'' by a '' heiden'', or hall of offerings. While the ''honden'' is the place for the enshrined ''kami
are the deities, divinities, spirits, phenomena or "holy powers", that are venerated in the Shinto religion. They can be elements of the landscape, forces of nature, or beings and the qualities that these beings express; they can also be the sp ...
'' and off-limits to the general public, the ''haiden'' provides a space for ceremonies and for worshiping the ''kami''. In some cases, for example at Nara
The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) is an " independent federal agency of the United States government within the executive branch", charged with the preservation and documentation of government and historical records. It ...
's Ōmiwa Shrine
, also known as , is a Shinto shrine located in Sakurai, Nara Prefecture, Japan. The shrine is noted because it contains no sacred images or objects because it is believed to serve Mount Miwa, the mountain on which it stands. For the same re ...
, the ''honden'' can be missing and be replaced by a patch of sacred ground. In that case, the ''haiden'' is the most important building of the complex.
References