In Japan, you have seen arches connecting nothing and in the middle of nowhere, standing in deep forests, beside great trees, on mountain peaks, on riverbanks and seashores. You now recognize them as Shinto torii, or shrine-gates, indicating that what lies beyond is holy ground. Near the torii you have seen the font where before entering the shrine visitors rinse their hands and mouths with water, in a symbolic purification of body and mind.
— Jennifer Westwood, On Pilgrimage