is a miniature Shinto shrine either found on the precincts of a larger shrine and dedicated to folk kami, or on a street side, enshrining kami not under the jurisdiction of any large shrine.Encyclopedia of Shinto, Hokora. Accessed on December 14, 2009 Dōsojin, minor kami protecting travelers from evil spirits, can for example be enshrined in a hokora.
The term hokora, believed to have been one of the first Japanese words for Shinto shrine, evolved from , literally meaning "kami repository", a fact that seems to indicate that the first shrines were huts built to house some yorishiro.The word literally means approach substitute. Yorishiro were tools conceived to attract the kami and give them a physical space to occupy, thus making them accessible to human beings.
See also Glossary of Shinto Setsumatsusha Spirit house Aedicula
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