Buddhist Prayer Beads Manufacturer Now Making Genderless Beads; New Product Was Inspired by Schools Introducing Unisex Uniforms

The Yomiuri Shimbun

12:26 JST, February 20, 2025

KYOTO—Kanbe Juzu Ten, a long-established manufacturer and wholesaler of Buddhist prayer beads in Shimogyo Ward, Kyoto, has begun offering “genderless beads” that can be used by both men and women. At a time when some schools are now introducing gender-neutral school uniforms in consideration of gender and sexual minorities, the company aims to have Buddhist schools use the beads as souvenirs. Due to factors such as the increase in family funerals, the company is feeling a sense of crisis that people, especially among the younger generations, are using prayer beads on fewer occasions.

The new product is called “uuu,” pronounced like the word “you.” The name is an acronym for “unisex,” “unique” and “universal.” The beads are 10 millimeters in diameter, which is in between the standard size of 12 millimeters or more for men and 8 millimeters or less for women. The main bead is made of cherry wood, while the rest are made of materials like acrylic, and the tassel is a light gray color with a greenish tint.

The catalyst for the development of this product was the COVID-19 pandemic. Nobuaki Kanbe, 46, the sixth president of the company, said, “That was the first crisis since the company was founded in the Taisho era (1912-1926).” Sales of prayer beads temporarily dropped to half of what they had been before the pandemic, as family funerals, in which the deceased are sent off in small groups, became the mainstream and the number of opportunities for people to attend funerals decreased.

Before that, the company had introduced a variety of “idea beads,” such ones made using stones from dismantled family tombs or wood from old whiskey barrels, but this time the company needed to develop a whole new product.

The company focused on making prayer beads for Buddhist schools to give to students as souvenirs when they graduated or entered school.

“Since there are schools that have introduced genderless school uniforms, there might be some that would accept genderless prayer beads as well,” Kanbe said. After speaking with people at several schools, the company decided to make such a product, believing that there was a need for them.

They also developed a “Kyo-yuzen bead bag,” woven from fibers made from recycled used plastic bottles and dyed with the Kyo-yuzen dyeing technique. For these bags they adopted a Scandinavian design that is popular among the younger generation, creating a product that blends tradition and sophistication.

In preparation for this spring’s school entrance and graduation season, the company sent out product information to Buddhist schools and other institutions last autumn and won orders from some of them.

A number of traditional techniques are used in the process of making prayer beads and tassels. For Kanbe, whose management philosophy as a manufacturer and wholesaler is “continuation and development of tradition,” approaching the next generation is a major mission.

“Young people not only respect diversity but are also interested in recycling and environmental issues. We hope that this will be a good opportunity to get them to pay attention to prayer beads,” he said.