Gehōbako

A gehōbako (外法箱) is a box that contains many magical items traditionally used by miko, and Itako.

It means lit. 'outer-ways box', in reference to practices outside of Buddhist teachings. It is a box which contains secret items representative of a protective spirit, or kami. It has been described as "parallel [to] the siberian shaman's drum as a source of power They have been described as representing a pre-Buddhist shamanism. It is often used for healing people.

It is believed at some point in premodern times most miko had human skulls in their gehōbako from people who promised their skulls to them, but this practice declined over time

Dolls for Kuebiko and Kangiten were often found in them in the 1960s.

Gehōbako were common among wandering miko