In
Shinto shrine
A Stuart D. B. Picken, 1994. p. xxiii is a structure whose main purpose is to house ("enshrine") one or more kami, , the deities of the Shinto religion.
The Also called the . is where a shrine's patron is or are enshrined.Iwanami Japanese dic ...
architecture, a is the part within a
Shinto shrine
A Stuart D. B. Picken, 1994. p. xxiii is a structure whose main purpose is to house ("enshrine") one or more kami, , the deities of the Shinto religion.
The Also called the . is where a shrine's patron is or are enshrined.Iwanami Japanese dic ...
's compound used to house offerings. It normally consists of a connecting section linking the ''
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 sta ...
'' (sanctuary, closed to the public) to the ''
haiden'' (oratory).
[Heiden](_blank)
JAANUS
Japanese Architecture and Art Net Users System, or JAANUS, is an online dictionary of Japanese architecture and art terms compiled by Dr. Mary Neighbour Parent. It contains approximately eight thousand entries. It is searchable in both English a ...
, accessed on November 17, 2009 In heiden, offerings (''heihaku''), consisting of strips of paper or silk or white and red clothing, are offered to the ''
kami
are the Deity, deities, Divinity, divinities, Spirit (supernatural entity), spirits, mythological, spiritual, or natural phenomena that are venerated in the traditional Shinto religion of Japan. ''Kami'' can be elements of the landscape, forc ...
''.
If the shrine is built in the ''
Ishi-no-ma-zukuri'' style, its stone pavement is lower than the floor of the other two rooms, and it is called , hence the name.
Heiden
''Encyclopedia of Shinto'', accessed on November 17, 2009 It can also be called or in other ways, and its position can sometimes vary. In spite of its name, nowadays it is used mostly for rituals.
The size of the heiden also varies considerably and there are some exceptions regarding its location. For example, the Naikū heiden at Ise Shrine
The , located in Ise, Mie Prefecture of Japan, is a Shinto shrine dedicated to the solar goddess Amaterasu Ōmikami and the grain goddess Toyouke-hime (Toyouke Omikami). Also known simply as , Ise Shrine is a shrine complex composed of many Shi ...
is located beyond the four walls that surround the sacred quarter.
References
Shinto architecture
{{Shinto-stub