Komainu

'"a" shape') for the open mouthed statue symbolically representing the beginning of all things, and un-gyō (吽形, lit.

'"un" shape') for the closed mouth statue symbolically representing the end of all things, or referred to collectively as a-un.

[7][8][a] In Asia, the lion was popularly believed to have the power to repel evil, and for this reason it was habitually used to guard gates and doors.

The Komainu strongly resemble Chinese guardian lions and in fact originate from Tang dynasty China.

The first lion statue in India appears around the 3rd century BC on top of a column erected by King Ashoka.

The custom of placing wooden, and later stone representations of the kara-inu and lions were established no later than the mid-Heian period (tenth century), though precise dating remains uncertain.

[14] Eventually they were also became apotropaic objects protecting Buddhist temples,[7][13] royal palaces,[13] nobility residences or even private homes.

Starting from the Edo period (1603–1868) other animals have been used instead of lions or dogs, among others wild boars, tigers, dragons and foxes.

The shīsā (シーサー), the stone animals that in Okinawa guard the gates or the roofs of houses, are close relatives of the shishi and the komainu, objects whose origin, function and symbolic meaning they share.