Shinto shrines, Shimenawa

Shimenawa is a twisted rice straw rope, used in the Shinto tradition to mark the presence of a sacred place, whether it be a shrine building, a tree or a rock. The Shinto practice observes two rules regarding how the shimenawa is made and how it is displayed. The rope is twisted always to the left, and the rope is displayed with the thick end towards the right side.

First mentioned in the oldest chronicles of Japan, Kojiki and Nihongi, the origins of the shimenawa ropes are deep in the history of Japan...