noun
sacred tree; divine tree
A tree considered sacred in Shinto or folk belief, often found at shrines or as an object of worship.
神社の境内には大きな神木が立っている。
A large sacred tree stands within the shrine grounds.
noun
bonfire support pillars
Only with reading しんぼく
Refers to the central support pillars used in traditional fire festivals (e.g., 左義長, どんど焼き). This sense is restricted to the reading しんぼく.
At the Sagichō festival, a fire is lit around pillars called shinboku.
御神木 is a more honorific term for a sacred tree, often used at Shinto shrines. 神木 is a broader term that can also refer to the bonfire pillars.
From 神 (shin, 'god, deity') + 木 (boku, 'tree'). The reading しんぼく is the standard Sino-Japanese reading. The obsolete readings かんき, かむき, and かみき reflect older native Japanese readings of the kanji.