at the entrance of a sacred area, usually, but not always, a shrine. Shrines of various size can be found next to, or inside temples. tōrō (灯籠) – a lantern at a shrine or Buddhist temple. Some of its forms are influenced by the . tō (塔) A pagoda, and an evolution of the stupa. After reaching China, the stupa evolved into a tower with an odd number of tiers (three, five, seven, nine, thirteen), excepted the tahōtō, which has two. The word is used together as a suffix of a numeral indicating the number of a pagoda's tiers (three tiers= , five tiers= , seven tiers = , etc.). or (東司) – a Zen monastery's toilet. (薬師堂) – a building that enshrines a statue of Yakushi Nyorai.* (浴室) – a monastery's bathroom. zen-dō (禅堂) – lit. "hall of Zen". The building where monks practice , and one of the main structures of a Zen . Gallery See also Buddhist temples in Japan Glossary of Japanese Buddhism Haibutsu kishaku Japanese architecture List of National Treasures of Japan (temples) Notes References Bibliography Iwanami Japanese dictionary, 6th Edition (2008), DVD version Japanese architectural history ja:日本建築史