Dōsojin are sometimes housed in small roadside Shinto shrines called hokora. In rural areas Dōsojin can be found at village boundaries, in mountain passes, or along byways, and in urban areas they can be seen at street corners or near bridges. When shaped like a phallus, they are associated with birth, procreation, and marital harmony. When represented as a human couple, Dōsojin are revered as deities of boundaries, marriage, fertility and protection.
