In Japan, wooden fish are called mokugyo (kanji: 木魚; hiragana: もくぎょ), and some huge specimens found in Buddhist temples weigh more than 300 kg. The Vietnamese name for the wooden fish is mõ (chữ Nôm: 楳), and the Manchu name is toksitu (ᡨᠣᡴᠰᡳᡨᡠ).

These hand drums are called mokugyo in Japan, muyu in China, mock gnu in Vietnam, moktak in Korea. The fish drum doesn’t always resemble a fish. Large fish drums, suspended in Chinese temples, are elaborately carved into fish and painted with gold and red.

Sep 13, 2024 · The mokugyo, also known as a “fish drum” or “wooden fish,” is a traditional percussion instrument of East Asian Buddhist traditions, including China, Japan, and Korea. The word “mokugyo” comes from the Japanese characters “moku” (木), meaning wood, and “gyo” (魚), meaning fish, which reflects its shape and material.

Mokugyo is used by Buddhism monks and laity in the Mahayana Buddhist tradition. It serves to keep the rhythm during sutra chanting.

May 27, 2013 · Mokugyo are instantly recognizable by their entirely unique and pleasant penetrating sound that almost seems to hypnotize with it’s intensity. The use of the fish drum is nearly universally used in ritual and private meditation amongst most forms of Zen or Chan, Mahayana Buddhism and Pure Land Buddhism.

The mokugyo, or fish drum, is used in Zen monasteries to keep the beat during the chanting of the liturgy. Its deep, rich tone makes it clear why the image of the fish -- symbolic of wakefulness -- is used.

These hand drums are called mokugyo in Japan, muyu in China, mock gnu in Vietnam, moktak in Korea. The fish drum doesn’t always resemble a fish. Large fish drums, suspended in Chinese temples, are elaborately carved into fish and painted with gold and red.

Title: Mokugyo (木魚) Date: ca. 1800–1889. Geography: Japan. Culture: Japanese. Medium: Wood. Dimensions: Mokugyo: 24 × 8 in. (61 × 20.3 cm); Beater: 19 in. (48.3 cm) Classification: Idiophone-Struck-slit drum. Credit Line: The Crosby Brown Collection of Musical Instruments, 1889. Object Number: 89.4.1711

Mokugyo (a fish-shaped wooden drum) is intended to keep the rhythm of sutra chanting by beating and sounding. It also helps to awaken people in sutra chanting. It is used in Zen sect, Tendai sect, and Jodo sect.

The wooden fish is a percussion instrument that is made out of a hollow wooden block. Sometimes, a variety of wooden fishes were made of plastics. Buddhist priests usually used this instrument to beat rhythms when they are chanting scriptures. Also known as the Mokugyo, Chinese temple block or wooden bell, this drum originated in