"These monks
formed an association that functioned as a kind of relief organization for
masterless samurai. The way of the komusō was an honorable calling. As a
member of the warrior class , a komusō might theoretically be summoned
to rout an enemy. Komusō were thus granted freedom to travel anywhere
they pleased. They were given the right to use ferries free of charge and even
attended the theater without paying admission. Komusō often misused
their privileges, however, and were known to wreck havoc on the road or in the
villages through which they passed. The bakufu responded to such behavior by
repeatedly issuing various prohibitions.
Komusō were required to tour either alone or in
pairs; no large groups of komusō roamed the land during the Edo period. Moreover, komusō were not
allowed to stay at a location for longer than a day; nor did they have the
right to use horses or palanquins. The komusō were, however, never
required to remove their basketlike hat. No matter how exalted a presence they
might encounter on the road or at an inn, they were not obliged to show their
faces. Hence on both the roads and at inns, komusō were highly
conspicuous.
Over one hundred komusō
temples existed throughout Japan
However, Constantine
Vaporis in Breaking Barriers: Travel and the State in Early Modern Japan
twice throws doubt on this claim. On page 131 he lists a number of types who
"...were prohibited from entering numerous domains." Komusō
were listed among them. Later (p. 147) Vaporis notes that komusō with
legitimate passes could travel freely. However, komusō without permits
would be questioned thoroughly and only if they were deemed acceptable, i.e.,
non-threatening could they continue."
