Симодава: Священные канаты в религии синто

Lengths of laid rice straw or hemp rope used for ritual purification in Shinto

lit. 'enclosing rope'; 標縄/注連縄/七五三縄; Shimenawa are lengths of laid rice straw or hemp rope used for ritual purification in the Shinto religion. vary in diameter from a few centimetres to several metres, and are often seen festooned with —traditional paper streamers. A space bound by typically indicates a sacred or ritually pure space, such as that of a Shinto shrine. are believed to act as a ward against evil spirits, and are often set up at a ground breaking ceremony before construction begins on a new building. They are often found at Shinto shrines, gates, and sacred landmarks. are also placed on , objects considered to attract spirits or be inhabited by them. These notably include being placed on certain trees, the spirits considered to inhabit them being known as Cutting down these trees is thought to bring misfortune. In the case of stones considered to be inhabited by spirits, the stones are known as (磐座/岩座). A variation of the are worn in sumo wrestling by (grand champions), during the entrance ceremony to debut as grand champion rank. In this instance, used by are seen as being living (a vessel capable of housing a spirit, known as when inhabited by a spirit), and are therefore visually distinguished as "sacred".

originate in Shinto mythology as a hallowed sacrifice related to the Japanese god called , and are used in various Shinto ceremonies. Aboriginal people in Japan have respected and revered since ancient times.

The prototype of in Shinto is a rope of Amaterasu, Japan's "Heaven shining great ". According to "A popular dictionary of Shinto", Amaterasu hid in a cave called Amano Iwato after an argument with her brother Susanoo. Other deities tried numerous ways to attract Amaterasu out of the cave. Local people held rituals in shrines. Early shrines were not composed of classical buildings,
or : folded white paper which stands for lightning, a symbol of fertility. Pine twigs: using pine twigs to decorate has a meaning of healthy growth for the next generation, as well as longevity of the elderly.

Hemp fiber is the basic material used in the production of , and has been used since ancient times. During the process of production, the straw stems are harvested between 70 and 80 days of growth, as beyond this, the quality of the fibre decreases as the plant starts to produce its seeds. The purpose of and is the same, in bringing lost people to the filled world. The name, taken from the quote "The border between good and evil is terribly fuzzy" by Czech novelist Milan Kundera, changed 'fuzzy' to 'frizzy' because of the twisted, inspired shape of his artwork. Avianto took the meaning of to separate 'the sacred and the profane', or 'the ideal and the secular', as inspiration in his work, using it to symbolise the boundary between 'the earth and heaven'.

Taiwan's Miaoli County began to produce for export to Japan in 1998. In the late 1990s, Japanese manufacturers visited Taiwan and found the high quality of straw as well as the relatively low cost of producing it. However, as there were no local residents who knew how to make , the Japanese started to provide free classes for them to study the skills for producing The industry in Taiwan developed rapidly, with many large factories appeared in Taiwan in the late 1990s. However, due to industrial disruption, most factories were forced to shut down a few years later, and only one factory was left to continue production. Other remaining factories chose to hand over the work to other Southeast Asian countries, particularly Vietnam, for a lower cost production. Later in 2005, a large number of orders were transferred back to Taiwan because buyers in Japan found that the quality of produced in Vietnam was poorer compared to those produced in Taiwan. The craftsmen in Taiwan harvest the straw to make , while Japanese manufacturers provide samples or finished products to the customers according to their orders.