Dōsojin (道祖神, road ancestor kami) is a generic name for a type of Shinto kami popularly worshiped in Kantō
and neighboring areas where, as tutelary deities of borders, they are
believed to protect travelers and villages from epidemics and evil
spirits.[1] [2]
Also called Sae no kami or Sai no kami (障の神・塞の神), Dōrokujin (道陸神) or Shakujin (石神 stone kami),
they are often represented as a human couple, by carved male or female
genitals, large stones or statues, or even tall poles along a road.
Dōsojin can sometimes be enshrined in small roadside Shinto shrines called hokora. When shaped like a phallus, they are associated with birth and procreation, and therefore marital harmony.[3]
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