Biwa hōshi (琵琶法師), also known as "lute priests", were travelling performers in the era of Japanese history preceding the Meiji period. They earned their income by reciting vocal literature to the accompaniment of biwa music. Biwa hōshi were mostly blind, and adopted the shaved heads and robes common to Buddhist monks.

Most mōsō biwas have tear-shaped bodies, but this rustic fish-shaped example was probably used by a wandering Buddhist monk. Biwa traditions began with blind priests who traveled from village to village singing sutras. The fish is an auspicious symbol of Buddhism signifying wakeful attention since most fish lack eyelids and remain alert.

…the blind-priest lute tradition (moso biwa) in which mendicant monks used to recite sutras (scriptures) from house to house or at temples. More lucrative forms of entertainment grew under the circus acts that developed out of the sangaku (folk theatricals) mentioned above, its companion comic acts, sarugaku (literally, monkey…

The Biwa, Japan's plucked lute, is descended from the Chinese pipa in the 7th century. In Japan it was first used in court music (gaku-biwa), then in a smaller version by Buddhist monks (moso-biwa). Later the heike-biwa, used to recite the epic Tale of Heike, combined elements of most and by the 12th century the most popular instrument.

Japanese music - Biwa, Vocal, Folk: During the late 19th century the biwa-accompanied narratives enjoyed a revival. The blind-priest biwa (moso biwa) tradition had originally been divided into two schools named after the provinces in …

The moso biwa was a smaller biwa with a larger plectrum used as solo instrument by blind monks, and it was this type that evolved into the Satsuma biwa, Chikuzen biwa, and other styles of biwa. Blind priests recited epics and ballads of a religious or secular nature.

2022年9月21日 · Purpose – musical accompaniment of Buddhist rituals. A distinctive feature is a small size, the absence of a specific shape. The model was a four-string. A variety of moso-biwa is sasa-biwa, used in the rituals of cleansing houses from negativity. Heike. It was used by wandering monks to accompany heroic religious songs.

The Biwa is one of Japan's most common string instruments for traditional music along with the different types of zithers. It is in a teardrop shape and most commonly used in court music and played during the reading of poetry. It was not originally Japanese as …

Each year in July, the order of the Blind Monks congregates in the Nakajima Jorakuin-Temple. This, the order's main temple, was founded in Satsuma in 1196. By tradition, the blind men still travel to this holy place to practise playing the biwa. The biwa is a special lute whose awkward sounds are believed to bring happiness.

The founder of the Satsuma Biwa is said to be Shimatsu Tadayoshi who collaborated with the blind priest, Fuchiwaki Jucho'in. Originally of the moso biwa tradition, it was altered to get bigger sounds and new lyrics with an educational slant.