Shimenawa

The sacred ropes seen at Japanese temples and shrines, called shimenawa, are not meant to represent clouds, but rather to demarcate sacred space and ward off evil spirits. They are traditionally made of rice straw or hemp and often adorned with shide, folded paper streamers,

Shimenawa are large ropes made of rice straw or hemp commonly seen at Shinto shrines, torii gates, and sacred landmarks in Japan. They play an important role in Shinto, dividing the sacred space where gods (kami) are enshrined from the profane outside world.Leggi altro