 a  is a japanese term which literally means "place of the way". initially, dÅjÅs were adjunct to temples. the term can refer to a formal training place for any of the japanese do arts but typically it is considered the formal gathering place for students of any japanese martial arts style such as karate, judo, or samurai, to conduct training, examinations and other related encounters. the concept of a dÅjÅ only referring to a training place specifically for asian martial arts is a western concept; in japan, any physical training facility, including professional wrestling schools, may be called dÅjÅ because of its close martial arts roots. == in martial arts ==  a proper japanese martial arts dÅjÅ is considered special and is well cared for by its users. shoes are not worn in a dÅjÅ. in many styles it is traditional to conduct a ritual cleaning (sÅji) of the dÅjÅ at the beginning and/or end of each training session. besides the obvious hygienic benefits of regular cleaning it also serves to reinforce the fact that dÅjÅ are supposed to be supported and managed by the student body (or by special students, e.g., uchi-deshi), not the school's instructional staff. this attitude has become lost in many modern dÅjÅ that are founded and run by a small group of people or instructors. in fact, it is not uncommon that in traditional schools (koryu), dÅjÅ are rarely used for training at all, instead being reserved for more symbolic or formal occasions. the actual training is conducted typically outdoors or in a less formal area. many traditional dÅjÅ follow a prescribed pattern with shomen ("front") and various entrances that are used based on student and instructor rank laid out precisely. typically students will enter in the lower-left corner of the dÅjÅ (in reference to the shomen) with instructors in the upper right corner. shomen typically contains kamidanaâan area for a shintÅ shrine and other artifacts. the term kamiza is frequently confused by martial arts practitioners with the kamidana.{{citation needed|date=october 201
Dojos Japanese_martial_arts_terms Zen_Buddhist_terminology