"A Shinto shrine (神社, jinja, archaic: shinsha, meaning: "place of the god(s)") is a structure whose main purpose is to house ("enshrine") one or more kami. Its most important building is used for the safekeeping of sacred objects, and not for worship. Although only one word ("shrine") is used in English, in Japanese, Shinto shrines may carry any one of many different, non-equivalent names like gongen, -gū, jinja, jingū, mori, myōjin, -sha, taisha, ubusuna, or yashiro. (For details, see the section Interpreting shrine names.)
Structurally, a Shinto shrine is usually characterized by the presence of a honden[note 1] or sanctuary, where the kami is enshrined. The honden may however be completely absent, as for example when the shrine stands on a sacred mountain to which it is dedicated, and which is worshipped directly. The honden may also be missing when there are nearby altar-like structures called himorogi or objects believed to be capable of attracting spirits called yorishiro that can serve as a direct bond to a kami. There may be a haiden (拝殿, meaning: "hall of worship") and other structures as well (see below). However, a shrine´s most important building is used for the safekeeping of sacred objects rather than for worship." - (en.wikipedia.org 15.11.2019)
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