How did Buddhism affect the development of Japanese musical terminology and practice?

Buddhism significantly shaped the development of Japanese musical terminology and practice, primarily through the tradition of shomyo, the classical chant of Japanese Buddhist sects such as Tendai and Shingon.12

Influence on Practice and Theory

Buddhism served as a primary source of religious musical influence in Japan. The theoretical foundations of shomyo—derived from foreign missionaries and Japanese scholars who studied in China—provided a core framework that influenced other forms of Japanese art music. These theoretical studies, documented in texts like the Shomyo yojinshu and Gyosan taikaishu, share similarities with the principles found in gagaku, the ancient court music of Japan.32

Development of Notation

Buddhist chant was instrumental in the evolution of Japanese musical notation. Early systems utilized neumes as memory aids for initiates. A highly influential system, the go-in hakase, was developed by the Shingon monk Kakui. This method used the angle of a short line to indicate specific notes within a pentatonic scale, a practice that profoundly influenced the notation of vocal music throughout that period and persists in Buddhist chant today.2