A question for the shaku-historians. There are two stories regarding
the origins of shakuhachi that are rather at odds with each other in my
present understanding and I'd like to at least get the time line
straight.
My question is: Which came first, the ronin samurai who played
shakuhachi in order get a "free pass" to travel around Japan (which
includes the story line of using the shakuhachi as a weapon) - - - or
the fuke priests/monks from various temples who used the shakuhachi as
part of their meditation and their service to the people in their area?
Part 2: Were the Komuso the ronin samurai or the priests/monks (I
see these vintage woodblock prints where the characters are described
as Komuso, but they have samurai hair styles and carry swords as well
as shakuhachi)?
Thanks,
Bill
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