Encyclopedia of Shinto

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カテゴリー1： 4. Jinja (Shrines)
カテゴリー2： Ritual Implements and Vestments
Title
Shin'yo | 神輿
Text Also read "mikoshi," and commonly called "omikoshi," the shin'yo is a palanquin or portable shrine used to carry the spirit of a kami in formal processions from its permanent location to a temporary resting site (called otabisho) for the duration of a festival. Most are constructed of black lacquered wood, and are built in a variety of shapes, including square, hexagonal, or octagonal. A shin'yo is composed of a base, a body, and a roof. The roof is topped with an image of the mythical Phoenix, or an onion flower, and the base is supported upon two parallel wooden beams aligned in the direction of travel for the purpose of bearing the palanquin (in some cases, two lateral beams are also attached). The origin of the shin'yo is unknown, but records state that on the occasion of the building of the Great Buddha in Nara (completed in 750), a purple ren'yo (a type of formal palanquin normally used by the emperor) was used to bear the kami of the Usa Hachiman Shrine from Kyushu to the capital. With the spread of the cult of "vengeful spirits" (goryō) in the Heian period, shin'yo came to be used throughout the country as means for transporting the kami. The many varieties in use today include both unadorned and ornate types, small versions borne by a small number of people and larger palanquins borne by many carriers. While shin'yo were originally meant to be carried by the parishioners (ujiko) of a shrine, they are also carried by regular townspeople in some urban areas.
— Motosawa Masash

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