WHAT IS A TORII?

A torii (鳥居) is a traditional japanese gate, typically found in front of Shinto shrines. It represents the border between the secular world and the sacred world so as one steps through the torii, they are stepping into a sacred space. A torii is typically made out of wood or stone, and painted red. Red is used because in Japan, it symbolizes protection against bad luck and evil.

Torri’s can be found all over Japan. There are about 90,000 shinto shrines in Japan, and at least one torii in front of each one. Some famous torii’s include Itsukushima Shrine located in Hiroshima, Fushimi Inari Shrine in Kyoto, and Meiji Shrine in Tokyo. When visiting a torii it is customary to walk toward one side of the torii instead of through the middle because the middle is where the gods, or kami, walk through. It is also customary to bow before passing through the gate.

There are two main styles of torii, the Shinmei Torii and the Myojin Torii. The shinmei torii has a straight kasagi while the myojin torii is typically more curvy. The kasagi is the top most horizontal beam that connects the two vertical hashira’s together. Slightly below the kasagi is another horizontal beam called the nuki. On some torii’s there is also a gakuzuka at the center of the nuki which displays the name of the shrine.