Komainu

Komainu (狛犬), 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.

Symbolic meaning

A pair of komainu (construable as "Korean dog") or shishi ("lion")/karajishi ("Chinese lion") are the typical stone-made creatures associated with gatekeeping on Shinto shrine grounds.

Meant to ward off evil spirits, modern komainu statues are usually near identical except for the shapes of their mouths: one has it open, the other closed (however, exceptions exist, where both komainu have their mouth either open or closed). The two forms are called a-gyō (阿形; lit. '"a" shape') for the open mouthed statue, symbolically representing the beginning of all things, and un-gyō (吽形; lit. '"un" shape') for the closed mouth statue, symbolically representing the end of all things. Collectively they are known as a-un and together, they symbolically represent the beginning and the end of all things. The iconography and symbolism were imported, and not native to Shintoism. The a-un symbolism is the same symbolism as that which is associated with the Niō, the two Buddhist gatekeeper deities.

History

Origins

In Asia, the lion was popularly believed to have the power to repel evil, and for this reason it was habitually used to guard gates and doors. The Komainu strongly resemble Chinese guardian lions and in fact originate from Tang dynasty China. The Chinese guardian lions are believed to have been influenced by Asiatic lion pelts and lion depictions introduced through trade from either the Middle East or India, countries where the lion existed and was a symbol of strength.