Inoshishi / Nanzen-Ji / Kyoto

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Komainu lion dogs stroll by in pairs with one mouth agape: A gyo, the other mouth firmly shut: Un gyo. Situated near Nanzen-ji in Kyoto, a renowned Buddhist site, there's a possible connection to the fierce deity Marishi-ten, always perched atop a wild boar. Nanzen-ji is also notable as the base of the Edo shogunate from the 17th century. One of its leaders was Takeda Shingen, and his emblem features the powerful wild boar.