nōe 衲衣

Also 納衣, shinnōe 刺納衣 or 刺衲衣, nōgesa 衲袈裟, nō 衲.

1　A Buddhist priest's vestment. Originally the same as *kesa 袈裟, nōe refers to any robe worn by a priest or found in Buddhist statuary.

2　An outer robe worn by a Buddhist priest, and found on *nyorai 如来 statues. The nōe is draped round the body either covering both shoulders *tsūken 通肩 or leaving the right shoulder exposed *hentan uken 偏袒右肩. The nōe was traditionally made from a patchwork of rags and discarded laymen's clothes. See *funzōe 糞掃衣. However, in Japan, elaborate formal versions were made. Although Buddhist law forbids the wearing of primary colours (red, yellow, blue, black and white; goseishoku 五正色; five primary colours), this was permitted when the fabrics were cut and combined in a patchwork. A robe made from five different coloured fabricsis called gonōe 五衲衣 and one made from many different coloured fabrics, hyakunōe 百衲衣.