A Tokin is a small black box worn on the foreheads of Yamabushi - practitioners of Shugendō - or Tengu, dangerous yet protective spirits of the mountains and forests from the Japanese mythology. It is not only worn as a head decoration, but also used as a drinking cup. It is similar in appearance to the "tefillin" worn by Orthodox Jews. It is theorized that they may be of common origin (see reference articles in History of the Jews in Japan); however the Tokin may simply be an evolution and miniturization of a full-sized hat of the same name worn earlier in the Kamakura period.

"Tokin" is also the name of a "promoted pawn" in Shogi (Japanese chess).