Kyoto Dog Names

What do you get when you cross a lion and a dog? A log? A dion? Well no, you get a Komainu, otherwise known as lion dog! What are Komainu and what do they have to do with Kyoto, dogs, lions, and why should you care? As every well-traveled person, you want to know all there is to know about the culture and the heritage of the place you are visiting, so when you drop by Kyoto, you will surely run into one of these dog statues.

Komainu are the statues of lion-dog hybrids, which often guard the entrances of the Shinto shrines in Japan. There are two types of these pawsome lion doggos, Sando Komainu, produced during the Edo period, and Jinnai Komainu, which are much older, but also breathtakingly beautiful. Komainu were created to ward off the evil spirits. Usually, they are placed on the entrances of the shrines in pairs, and usually, one Komainu has its mouth open, while the other one’s mouth is closed. According to the symbolic meaning of this, the open mouth is supposed to symbolize the first letter of the Sanskrit alphabet “a,” and the closed mouth dog is supposed to pronounce the last letter “um.” The open and closed mouths of Komainu represent the beginning and end of everything, and together they form the sound Aum, which is a sacred syllable in Buddhism, Hinduism, and Jainism.

The Komainu remind of the traditional Chinese guardian dogs that originate from the Tang dynasty. In Japan, during the Nara period, Komainu were mostly placed indoors, but during the Heian period, they were placed outside and were made from wooden and metal parts. Also, in the Heian period, the lion dogs got their names as well. The one with its mouth open was named shishi, which means lion, and the one with its mouth closed was called komainu, or Goguryeo dog. However, over time, the animals were made to be identical and finally got the same name – komainu.

In the Inari shrine in Kyoto, the Komainu resemble a fox. However, they are still considered to be dogs. Sometimes they are painted white. In Otoyo shrine in Kyoto, Komainu are represented as mice! Even though many doggos all over the world may be mad, there is a good reason behind it. According to the legend, a mouse appeared in front of Okuninyushi, the god of marriage, and told him that he could escape from the snake den through the hole in the ground. Either way, mice may guard that one temple, but doggos are responsible for all the other ones, so it is still a win for the canines!