Meoto Iwa

The shimenawa, composed of five separate strands which each weigh 40 kilograms,[1] must be replaced several times a year in a special ceremony.

The couple rocks at Futami Okitama Shrine in Mie Prefecture Ise City have been known for a long time, as depicted by Ukiyo-e artist [ja] in the Edo period, and are generally used as a symbol and prayer for marital bliss and domestic safety, maritime security and great catch, and is said to be a symbol of Iwakura Shinko in Kojindo, which means a symbolic place or object in Nature, especially megaliths, rocks, and mountains, were considered Shintais and believed to be places where Kamis resided.

It is also an embodiment of the concept of the two sides of the same coin that pervades ancient Shinto and current shintos, such as the idea that this world consists of Utsushi-yo and Tokoyo, and the Seven Lucky Gods of Ebisu and Daikoku, two of the Seven Lucky Gods, are believed to be one, and the counting of chopsticks and footwear as one set or one pair is also said to be unique to Japan.

This is why Jizos and Dōsojin are often depicted as a couple or as a pair of large and small rocks or stone statues.

[2] During the shimenawa-renawa-renawa-renawa-renawa-renawa-renawa-renawa ceremony, a woodcarving song is sung, and some people take pieces of the old rope home as a good-luck charm for marital bliss.